Under the baton of Benjamin Morris-Cline, the Hays Symphony Orchestra demonstrated that it continues to improve, as it has done since 2005, when former conductor Jeffery Jordan took over. Friday's concert, with guest violin soloist Selim Giray of Pittsburg State University, captivated the audience with tried-and-true orchestral fare.

A reduced orchestra began the concert with Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B minor (BWV 1067), a set of stylized dances composed for flute, strings and harpsichord. (If you were wondering, BWV stands for "Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis," or index of Bach's works.) After a rather choppy start, the ensemble recovered, ultimately giving a splendid performance of the various dances comprising the suite. Flutist Hilary Shepard, new to the orchestra, delighted everyone with a rhythmically incisive, pitch- and intonation-perfect performance in the whimsical "Badinerie" that concludes the piece.

Soloist Giray joined the full orchestra for two important late 19th-century French compositions, the Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso for Violin by Camille Saint-Saens, and Poeme for Violin and Orchestra (opus 25) by Ernest Chausson. The two pieces contrast very nicely -- the Rondo, composed, according to the program notes, for "Spanish virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate," afforded Giray an opportunity to dazzle with spectacular cadenzas. Poeme, on the other hand, allowed him to communicate both intense passion and serene bliss.

Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky's fiery "Marche Slave" (Slavonic March, opus 31), which concludes with a theme that prefigures his "1812 Overture," brought the evening to an exhilarating close.

The Hays Symphony Orchestra will perform next at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14 at Beach/Schmidt. For information and tickets, please call the HSO box office at (785) 628-4226.

This week promises to be exciting for fans of FHSU music. The faculty showcase recital will be 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Palmer Hall. The band and choir concert will be 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Beach/Schmidt.

Ruth Firestone is a supporter of music and theater in Hays. rfiresto@fhsu.edu