Vermont Symphony Orchestra dazzled at Saskadena Six

The renowned Vermont Symphony Orchestra made a stop in South Pomfret last Wednesday for its annual Summer Festival Tour. Saskadena Six was the second of six locations for the 2025 tour, which wound its way around the state and wrapped up at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe. This year’s selection was called Summer of Love, and it featured works from a broad range of musicians that included Tchaikovsky and Leonard Bernstein. Given the timing around Independence Day, patriotic flair opened the set with The Star-Spangled Banner and finished with Stars and Stripes Forever. Mezzo Nikola Printz served as this year’s guest vocalist on a handful of songs, one of which was Heitor Villa-Lobos’s Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5.

Robert Shumskis Photos

The orchestra switched from pop tunes to tangos during its vibrant set.
Visitors fill the field in front of the bandshell tent, which is set up at the base of the Bee Line trail.
Guest vocalist Nikola Printz performs during the second half.
Ava Creighton, from Kensington, MD, stops by the instrument tent to try playing a trumpet. The orchestra brings along several extra instruments, such as violins, drums, and a cello, for curious visitors to play.
The orchestra plays Across the Stars, the love theme from Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones.
Conductor Andrew Crust and the orchestra members prepare to take a bow at the close of the first half.
Decked out in American flags and glow necklaces, Brandon Roberts (left), Sheri Abild, Jeff Johnson, Kristin Prescott, Lisa Dubois, Rita Rice, and Norm Dubois traveled from Ascutney for the performance.
Visitors fill the field in front of the bandshell tent, which is set up at the base of the Bee Line trail.
Conductor Andrew Crust leads the orchestra through the powerful closing moments of Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, which closed the first half of the show.