The Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra held a concert called “Classical Rendezvous” in association with the Royal Embassy of The Netherlands at the Al Bustan Palace Hotel with Conductor Stephen Threlfall and The Storioni Trio of Amsterdam. Che and I were fortunate enough to get tickets in advance this time. You really need to get them weeks or months in advance as ROSO tickets sell quickly!!! (Only 10 RO!) If you ever come to Muscat and are interested in attending a ROSO concert, call the Box Office at (968)24764000 to find out when the next concert is and who is performing.
This is quite blurry but you are not even supposed to take photos in the auditorium. They don’t mind (I was told “off the record” by someone in charge…) as long as there is no flash as that would be extremely distracting to the orchestra! 
The Al Bustan Palace Hotel at night (taken from the parking lot)
An Indian gardener working on the hedges around the “Oman Auditorium” at Al Bustan
Another quick look at Oman Auditorium from the front
This is Marc Vossen who plays the cello. He was selling CDs and signing copies for those interested in the lobby after the performance.
About The Storioni Trio: “Wouter Vossen (violin) and Marc Vossen (cello). The trio derives its name from the Laorentius Storioni violin from Cremona, which dates from 1794 and is played by Wouter Vossen. Marc Vossen plays a Giovanni Grancino cello from Milan, dating from 1700. In order to develop its ensemble-playing, the trio has worked over the years with great musicians such as Isaac Stern, Mstislav Rostropovich, Menahem Pressler, and Ralph Kirshbaum, as well as members of the Emerson Quartet and the Vermeer Quartet.
The Storioni Trio offers an expansive repertoire ranging from Haydn and Mozart via Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, Ravel and Shostakovich, to exciting works by contemporary composers. Composer Kevin Volans wrote a triple concerto for the 10th anniversary of the Storioni Trio. The trio has received various prizes and awards, and performs regularly on radio and television. The CDs recorded by the Storioni Trio Amsterdam have all received great critical acclaim. www.storionitrio.com www.storionifestival.com ” (taken from the programme)
My lovely wife, Che, in the Oman Auditorium. She was patient enough to capture about 11 minutes of this concert while they were performing “Triple Concerto in C major op.56 for Violin, ‘Cello and Piano” by Beethoven. You can view/hear it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zPHKCrykfE “Beethoven wrote this piece for the Archduke Rudolf of Austria, shortly after he had become his pupil. The piano part therefore is relatively straightforward; the ‘cello and violin parts however are fiendishly difficult, written for artists in the service of the Archduke, the violinist Seidler and the ‘cellist Anton Kraft. It was probably Beethoven’s intention to provide a showy work for his young pupil, who would only have been in his teens at the time, backed up by two more mature, crack soloists. The concerto began to take shape in early 1803 and was finished in 1804.” (again, copied from the programme) For those of you who do not enjoy classical music, this video may be more to your liking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUru7nSyKxQ 
Two of my colleagues, Frances Cook (another Canadian) and Jay Butler, (who lives in the same apartment building as Che and I!) enjoying the concert. It was a pleasant surprise to bump into a great number of people we knew, mostly from church, at the concert.
Che Freo Brown and another look at the auditorium
For further details concerning The Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra, please contact: Tel: (00968)26892165, Fax:(00968)26894025 We loved the concert and are looking forward to the next one!!!
