Maestro David Amado, musical director and conductor of the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, made a brief meeting last week on the Treasure Coast to warm up the orchestra’s support base ahead of the new season’s start on the 15th. January.

A 16-performance concert series does not take place without a lot of work in advance, especially when a major change of venue is planned for the Vero Beach audience.

Amado and I chatted over a cup of coffee for over an hour. I not only found out what was going on with the orchestra, but also found out that Amado is a very funny guy.

I learned that the Michelin man’s real name is Bibendum and got a tip to ask Siri on my iPhone what I would get if I divided zero by zero. Give it a try.

Amado is excited about the move from St. Edward’s School to the Vero Beach Community Church. I think anyone who was in the packed house for last season’s Beethoven Symphony No.9 with a galaxy of choral groups from Treasure Coast will share his enthusiasm.

He said the church is beautiful and a musically tuned space with excellent acoustics for professional musicians with their old Italian violins, carefully crafted wind instruments and beautiful timpani.

The Music Director said the short but busy season is a great opportunity for him and the musicians to spend more time with the repertoire. A lot of times, he said, they have a week of rehearsals, play a show and they’re done. “You would love to have that second chance to see what’s going on. ”

Performances evolve over a week if you play four performances, like the Atlantic Classical Orchestra does, and continue to evolve over multiple seasons. He explained, “If you play the same song five years apart, four times each, that eighth performance will be very different from the first. It is constantly evolving.

The quality of the programming and the quality of what is happening on stage gives Amado a great sense of pride.

“They are first class musicians who have the ability to perform in this magnificent hall,” he said. “We have excellent soloists and an excellent repertoire and we have a flamenco dancer who is joining us this year.”

Dancer Eva Conti will join mezzo-soprano Tara Curtis for Falla’s “El Amor Brujo” (Love, Magician or Wizard), the Ballet Suite from the Masterworks II series. In January’s Masterworks I, Philippe Bianconi will be the guest artist of Grieg’s “Piano Concerto in A minor”.

Single tickets for all Masterworks Series programs are on sale now. For the Vero Beach Museum of Art Chamber series, single tickets, if any, go on sale November 1. I’m told the series sells out early every year.

Information and tickets are available at atlanticclassicalorchestra.com. For an audience reminder, click on Symphony 101 when you get to the website.

Nature art exhibition

It’s the weekend of the fourth annual Bird and Nature Art Show, with the Pelican Island Preservation Society hosting to commemorate National Wildlife Refuge Week, October 13-20. The art exhibit is held at the Sebastian River Art Club, 1245 Main St., Sebastian, all weekend, and speaker Missi Hatfield and a Pelican Island Sunset Cruise will be at Capt Hiram’s. Get details on the weekend at firstrefuge.org.

Willi Miller writes on Indian River County. Contact her at caribsea@bellsouth.net.