i most certainly do not proclaim any great love for, or knowledge of, classical music. i will admit however, that i do enjoy our evenings with the amarillo symphony. saturday night was the last concert in the symphony's 85th season. this concert the was latest installment in my exposure to what some might call the finer things in life. the rough edges on this dry land cotton farmer's kid likely will never be completely removed but saturday night's performance by our amarillo symphony orchestra at the world class globe-news center for the performing arts did it's bit toward that end. an evening in our hall, which btw has been compared favorably to the sydney opera house, is never boring, not even for this lover of country music. the concert opened with jean sebelius' finlandia, opus 26 . pleasant enough in itself but then there was a salute to helen gerald who recently passed. mrs. gerald played with the symphony and other groups around town for 63 years. the recount of her years and accomplishements both amazed and moved me. samuel barber's concerto for violin and orchestra, opus 14 was dedicated in her memory. the guest artist, brian lewis, played well but to me he phoned in his performance. there simply was no emotion coming from him, no need to put yourself out for little a-town, after all. that he was playing a stradivarius did impress me however. our fantastic hall accepted and reflected all the strad could deliver and neither left us wanting. the final piece of the evening was camille staint-saens' symphony no. 3 in c minor, opus 78, organ symphony. merely pleasant in the beginning, the peice built until the magnificent coda. the standing o in this case was well deserved. i am in awe of maestro kimbo ishii-eto and the growth educed from our symphony since he took up the baton. this country boy can't wait to see and hear what kimbo, and the symphony's 86th season, may hold in store. aio