The Bermuda Philharmonic Orchestra gave us four selections of music drawn from the classical repertory, all of which were subtly united in theme and philosophy.

The concert, held at St John’s Church, Pembroke and entitled A Hero’s Journey, featured soloists Alison Black on Violin and Kent Hayward on horn. Kate Kayaian was the conductor.

Aaron Copland’s 1942 Fanfare for the Common Man was performed by eight brass players, elevated above the orchestra in a parade-like line to maximise sound.

A massive, heroic Zarathrustra style timpani introduction gave way to Copland’s main themes. But where we might have expected Nietzschean superman swagger, we got a series of modest, unassuming and richly melodic brass and orchestral passages, almost as if a slightly reluctant person were suddenly thrust under blazing spotlights.

We were reminded of the year of composition. While Nazi armies were closing on Stalingrad, William Beveridge and other heroes in Europe and the United States were quietly planning for the coming peace with universal education and healthcare, and Henry Wallace, then the US Vice President, announced the coming of the “century of the common man”.

Vaughan Williams’s 1914 The Lark Ascending was an idyllic evocation of a countryside at peace; the orchestra started with a drone-like aural backdrop to Alison Black’s soaring solo violin, which used advanced trills and harmonics to evoke the complexity and sheer transcendental beauty of the lark’s song.

While the orchestra moved on to musical hints of country dances and Elgar-like evocations of landscapes, we came to see the lark’s song as a part of a pantheistic, natural force.

The Romanza and Allegro from Mozart’s Third Horn Concerto showcased Hayward’s effortlessly compelling horn playing.

Starting with a simple, lyrical solo four-bar country dance melody, the Romanza became an intense dialogue between horn and orchestra in a series of themes and variations, which kept a simple, folk feel throughout. In the Allegro, Hayward’s playing reminded us that the sound of the horn had always been an integral part of the chase: the music changed from ballroom atmosphere to outdoor hunt, from stately dance to a gallop punctuated by rapid note runs, superbly executed.

Beethoven’s Symphony No 3 Eroica, explained Kayaian, was originally dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte but after Napoleon’s coup d’etat to make himself Emperor in 1804, Beethoven scratched out Napoleon’s name and substituted the title we now give it.

In his view, heroism should be more democratic than autocratic. The orchestra played the fourth and final movement for us.

It is an intense, mercurial, magnificent piece. Embedded within it are fanfare-like flourishes from the brass and thunder from percussion along with intense orchestral syncopation.

Melodies and variations were tossed ever more rapidly between orchestra sections, leading up to a series of staggered, full orchestral hits for the finale.

Scholars have identified ten different themes and variations within the movement, all building to this heroic finish.

Thank you, Kate Kayaian, Philharmonic and soloists, for such a memorable, heroic evening.