This was a sharp program of off-the-beaten-path works you’d be hard-pressed to find spread across a full season from a single orchestra (let alone collected together on a single concert), each played with gusto.

David Lobel conducing the New England Conservatory Philharmonia. Photo: NEC.

By Jonathan Blumhofer

David Loebel and the New England Conservatory Philharmonia continued one of the city’s best-kept symphonic secrets – free, weekly (or thereabout) concerts showcasing NEC’s various orchestras – Wednesday night at Jordan Hall. For the opener, Loebel and Co. showcased one of the best aspects of the annual series: a sharp program of off-the-beaten-path works you’d be hard-pressed to find spread across a full season from a single orchestra (let alone collected together on a single concert), each played with gusto.

One of the themes of NEC’s fall programming this year is the centennial of Leonard Bernstein, whose hundredth birthday fell in August (and which is being further marked by the school with the Leonard Bernstein at 100 exhibit running through November 11^th). Thus, music Bernstein wrote or was closely affiliated with figures prominently across these concerts.

Wednesday’s offered two of the American icon’s most exuberant, accessible scores.

The “Three Dance Episodes” from On the Town date from early in his career: the 1944 musical follows the adventures of three sailors on a 24-hour shore leave in New York City during World War 2. The dances – “The Great Lover,” “Lonely Town” (Pas de deux), and “Times Square: 1944” – are extracted straight from the show.

Bernstein’s Divertimento, on the other hand, was written in 1980 for the Boston Symphony’s centennial. A set of eight short, charming movements that showcase the families of the orchestra and highlight the composer’s idiosyncratic melodic gifts, it’s a unique product from Bernstein’s last decade, when his music tended more towards brooding introspection than not.

On Wednesday, the Philharmonia’s reading of both scores suggested an orchestra (and conductor) largely at home in Bernstein’s style: tempos were snappy, colors bright, and the energy level never flagged. On the Town’s “The Great Lover” offered plenty of swagger and the jazzy second theme of “Times Square: 1944” fell into a nice groove. In the later piece, the “Samba” was deliciously athletic, the “Turkey Trot” plenty droll, and the concluding “March: ‘The BSO Forever’” brimmed with pep.

Orchestral solos were clearly defined.

Principal trumpet Eli Ross articulated his “Lonely Town” turns with a golden tone while Sam Frenduto’s driving clarinet and Kit Lau’s alto saxophone soared in the On the Town finale.

Jonah Ellsworth made the short cello solo in the Divertimento’s “Waltz” sound a bit like an extract from Dvorak’s Concerto (which you can hear him play in full with the Boston Philharmonic in a couple of weeks), while Alessandro Cirafici brought a tender glow to the oboe part in the “Mazurka.” Chris Boulais (trumpet), Marquis Wincher (trombone), and Colin Benton (tuba) made sultry work of the “Blues” movement and the trio of flutes imbued the march’s “In Memoriam” introduction with touching spirit.

At the same time, the Philharmonia never seemed totally comfortable with Bernstein’s quirkier rhythmic tendencies, which were largely appropriated from Copland and Stravinsky. Attacks in both works were occasionally tentative and some entrances were missed (or too eagerly anticipated). Still, plenty of professional ensembles don’t play either of these pieces with nearly the level of brio and assurance Loebel drew from the Philharmonia – and that speaks volumes.

What also spoke volumes (literally and figuratively) was the Philharmonia’s kinetic account of Carl Nielsen’s Symphony no. 2, with which they ended the night. After Mahler, perhaps Bernstein’s most important work as musical proselytizer was on behalf of this Danish composer, whose music languished outside his home country after his death in 1931.

His Symphony no. 2, subtitled “The Four Temperaments,” dates from 1901-02. It draws its inspiration from a woodcut Nielsen observed in a tavern that depicted the four ancient “humors” (in modern parlance, personality types): impetuous, indolent, melancholy, and cheerful. The score explores these characteristics, as well as their excursions into contradictory psychological states, in a concise thirty-five-or-so minutes.

On Wednesday, the Symphony’s opening movement (the Impetuous) was full-blooded and passionate. The quiet moments offered brief respites, but the whole thing passed like a gale: furious, in-your-face, and exhilarating.

In contrast, the second (the Indolent) was plenty relaxed and easy-going, its woodwind urgings dripping with whimsy.

The melancholy third movement, with its searing climaxes and excellently-played woodwind solos, offered a soulful counterbalance. The finale’s giddy naivety overflowed with vim and irony.

Jordan Hall is a rather snug venue for such a forceful piece and, if you were looking for nuance and balance, you might have come away disappointed: the “Temperaments’” biggest moments sometimes blared (at certain points in the outer movements, you could hear the mighty brass section echoing around the hall – on top of the rest of the orchestra!).

That said, on Wednesday night a strong sense of living in and viscerally experiencing the music was apparent – as opposed to simply hearing it. This was partly a matter of acoustics and partly a result of Loebel’s interpretation, which was, while not aggressive, full of vigor and a strong sense of the melodic line. Suffice it so say, I won’t soon forget it.

Nor will I soon forget the night’s opener, Samuel Barber’s Second Essay for Orchestra. Why neither of Barber’s first two Essays, his Overture to the School for Scandal, Toccata Festiva, Symphony no. 1 and numerous other works aren’t the go-to repertoire of every American orchestra is a perennial mystery. They’re pieces that have it all: tunes, drama, counterpoint, great orchestration – you name it. And yet they remain on the fringes. Go figure.

As with the Nielsen, Wednesday’s reading of the Second Essay had its muddled moments – the fugal entrances in the second part lacked a certain degree of edginess – and some of its mid-register textures didn’t fully bloom.

But the Philharmonia’s overall reading was compelling. The Essay’s first half – highlighted by warm, supple solos from Cirafici (playing English horn) and oboist David Norville – was warm and lovely, while its second packed plenty of excitement (not to mention a rousing, cathartic final F-major cadence).

What wasn’t there to love about 20^th-century music on a night like this? In a word, nothing.

Jonathan Blumhofer is a composer and violist who has been active in the greater Boston area since 2004. His music has received numerous awards and been performed by various ensembles, including the American Composers Orchestra, Kiev Philharmonic, Camerata Chicago, Xanthos Ensemble, and Juventas New Music Group. Since receiving his doctorate from Boston University in 2010, Jon has taught at Clark University, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and online for the University of Phoenix, in addition to writing music criticism for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.