Mississippi Symphony Orchestra’s “Alluring Charms” chamber concert at St. James’ Episcopal Church February 15 sweeps in like a harbinger of spring – from the renewed bloom of Baroque inspiration in Crafton Beck’s Concerto Grosso and the fresh breeze that is Steve Reich’s Duet to the splendor of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1.

MSO Violinists Bonnie Brown and Daniel Jones will bring Reich’s 1993 work to captivating life, as their intertwining threads weave a mesmerizing pull upon listener’s ears and imaginations. The evening’s program also offers the rare a capella treat of two Thomas Tallis works by the St. James’ Compline Choir, directed by Jonathan Trotter.

Jackson native Bonnie Brown is the daughter of Will and Sally Brown and older sister to MSO concertmaster Shellie Brown Kemp. Her MSO ties reach back to the tender age of 3, when she started violin lessons with revered MSO violist Tammy Luke. “She taught Suzuki at the time. She made it so fun and accessible, which is the key with kids when you’re trying to get them to learn a very difficult instrument,” Brown said. Her dad went with her to lessons, learning as she did (encouraged in the Suzuki method), and they’d cap the experience with a little pizza date at the old Pizza Hut on Frontage Road. “I have really great memories of that, growing up.”

Brown also studied a while with MSO’s beloved Mickey Davis, “really an amazing fixture,” she said. “He initiated me into being able to play with MSO. I was still a teenager and still a student, but I was able to sub in with them and play… which was a great experience to be able to prepare for school and life after that.” Once weekly studies at the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa folded into her training as a teen. “My parents did quite a lot to support my music ventures, growing up.”

She earned her undergraduate degree at Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music and master’s from Manhattan School of Music in New York. Also a singer, she leaned on both talents in New York, played with regional orchestras and she spent three summers at the prestigious Aspen Summer Music Festival and School. “The learning never stops.… Every day, I’m still learning and finding new things I can improve on.”

Brown’s 2020 move back to Jackson reconnected her with the local music scene, and when a spot opened at MSO in 2021 (actually, her sister’s chair, following Shellie’s promotion to concertmaster), she auditioned and made it her own. She also subs with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in New Orleans, as well as the symphony orchestras in Mobile and in Meridian.

Daniel Jones originally hails from Starkville. His parents were both somewhat musical, and though that was never a primary focus, it was strong enough to put Jones and his siblings on the appreciation path early on.

“We all had to pick instruments we would study.… I heard the violin, and I guess it captured my attention,” Jones said. He began piano studies a few years after that. Among his siblings, “I’ve been the one to choose music as my primary career.” Even with the challenges of making a living as a musician, “…when it came down to it, I couldn’t imagine doing anything else,” He studied violin as well as piano and organ at Belhaven University.

Jones is now in his ninth season playing with MSO. He also works as a ballet pianist and accompanist for students at Belhaven University, as well as a substitute organist for Jackson area churches. Other music ventures include collaborations with fellow MSO players in recitals. He’s currently pursuing graduate studies in organ.

“Performing music is really the thing that I love to do,” Jones said. “The symphony is just an outlet for that. There’s something special about symphonic performance.… The level of community focus that’s required to make the performance happen is something that’s kind of incredible. And the opportunity to perform so many different types of music in different settings and different size ensembles keeps it interesting.”

Brown and Jones have collaborated in previous concerts, with Brown on the violin and Jones on the piano or organ. “This is super fun for us to get to play a duet, both as violinists,” Brown said. “I’m really looking forward to that.”

Composer Steve Reich’s minimalist composing style and the canons he employed in Duet make a perfect example, Brown said. Both violinists play a simple canonic figure that intertwines, comes in at different times and plays against the other. “Steve found ways of making this type of music really beautiful. In situations where you might think the harmonies are dissonant or the nature of the canon may be unsettling with everything going on… it has its own unique beauty to it, and I think the audience will really appreciate it and love that.

“Once it starts, it keeps going and it does pull you in. It’s a brief piece, but it really makes for a significant experience in that way.”

Jones said, “I think there’s expressive power in the way that the two instruments interact with each other, playing the same line but then it weaves in and out of itself.

“It’s actually a challenging process, learning how to play the piece. You have to have the right state of mind to perform it, so that you’re in the music, but not being distracted and pulled off in the wrong direction and there’s a balance of discipline and going with the flow,” Jones relayed.

It brings a fresh gust to an enticing program that showcases contrasts plus highlights musical charms and influences across the centuries, from Renaissance times to present day.

“That makes for an interesting program because it allows us to see where we’ve come from, as musicians… and then we see how those elements have carried forward into the music of Steve Reich,” Jones continued.

“It expresses this kind of ancestral community that exists in the artistic world, that I think is sort of powerful.”

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Venue Reminder:

St. James’ Episcopal Church — 3921 Oakridge Dr, Jackson, MS 39216— is the location for MSO’s “Alluring Charms” concert at 7:30 p.m. on February 15, 2025. Seating is general. Tickets are $28 for adults and $5 for students, kindergarten through college (with valid student ID), available at msorchestra.com and at the venue box office at 6:30 p.m. on the evening of the concert.