An odd juxtaposition of talents worked exceedingly well on the Piccolo Spoleto Spotlight Concert series Sunday in the first of a catalogue of programs to be held at the New Tabernacle Fourth Baptist Church.

The program, "Tales of Appalachia," featured the Kandinsky Trio and Connie Regan-Blake, a storyteller.

Folks waiting to get in were not quite sure just what they were were going to hear, but they were willing to give it a try. None of them went away disappointed. The program had been cut by the time we got in, was well-suited as family entertainment and innovative in its programming.

Regan-Blake got the show off to a hilarious start with her story, "The Foolish Bet," an Appalachian version of a 12th century Irish tale about two small-town wives and their foolish husbands.

The Kandinsky Trio cut Beethoven's "Trio in E-flat Major" in half and played only the 2nd and 4th movements. The Adagio movement was a beautifully played rendition, but it was the Presto Finale that really woke up the audience. Their sparkling technique got everyone's attention. In response to the heavy applause, they played an encore in the middle of the program.

The encore was a medley of Hungarian and Russian gypsy folk music played with breathtaking passion. Even the page turner got into the act on this one by strumming the piano strings. It left us wanting more.

The concert concluded with "The Cantankerous Blacksmith," with the trio providing mood music for Regan-Blake's story of the mean old Wicked John, who challenged the devil himself.

While Regan-Blake is an extraordinary storyteller, and the program works well by combining her talent with the Kandinsky Trio, musicians in the audience would have liked to hear even more from the trio. Benedict Goodfriend, violin, Alan Weinstein, cello and Elizabeth Bachelder, piano, are a trio of stunning talent. The whole troupe was called back for extra well-deserved bows.