Saturday was the Feast of Cecilia, patron saint of musicians. Whether intentionally or not, several hundred Alaskans celebrated by making music for the sheer love of it.

The Anchorage Civic Orchestra, sounding as good as I've heard them in recent outings, performed in Bartlett High School's new theater. The program opened and closed with dances: Bartok's "Rumanian Folk Dances" and Liszt's "Dance of Death," or "Totentanz."

The latter featured piano soloist Timothy Smith. It was a good match-up in the acoustically fine space. (When concertmaster Nina Bingham reminded the audience to shut off their cell phones, she didn't need to use a microphone.)

The big piano easily held its own against the modestly-sized orchestra -- overpowering them in some cases -- which was fine; Liszt wrote this piece as a piano showcase, with the orchestra mostly relegated to cheering section. But Smith knows this music backwards. He reveled in the glissandos and thunder he drew from the instrument and the orchestra supplied its supporting role nicely. The brass players asserted themselves admirably in key spots. The audience of 400-500 loved it and responded with cheers and a standing ovation.

Conductor Tai Wai Li maintained brisk tempos and crisp articulation. The best playing came in two works by Mozart, the Symphony No. 39 and his Overture to "The Magic Flute." Again the brass sounded authoritarian in the big chords of the overture, and the winds -- who had some excellent solos in the Bartok -- again distinguished themselves here. The strings enjoyed several stretches of unusually tight ensemble-playing, compared to some recent performances, both in the overture and in the outer movements of the symphony.

Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia on Greensleeves" rounded out the program in the handsome facility. The 650-seat Bartlett auditorium features dark wood, tile walls and comfortable seats, but the rails placed in mid-aisle present a minor obstacle. If you're coming down one side of the aisle and spot an open seat on the other side, you have to continue to the next opening in the rail and backtrack to get there.

About the time the Civic Orchestra concert ended, the 2008 All-State Music Festival started at West High. The auditorium was packed -- as was the parking lot -- with people on hand for the best of Alaska's high school musicians.

They'd come from Kodiak and Ketchikan, Craig and Cordova, Homer and Houston, singers, band and orchestra players. The precision of these talented kids was marvelous to hear, especially the strength and unity of the violins in the orchestra.

But the most remarkable thing to me was how the choristers did not use sheet music. They'd learned everything by heart, including some very difficult a cappella numbers. One singer told me she'd only had her music for about a month. The wobble-free sound of so many young voices confidently nailing their parts made it a St. Cecilia's day to remember.

Final note, AT&T gave a special award at the festival to the school whose contingent boasted the highest grade point average. Grace Christian won.