RIDGEFIELD -- Bringing the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra outdoors on the Danbury Green last Saturday night had some bonus features, including children playing, picnickers noshing, friends chatting, Mayor Mark Boughton shaking hands and a rodeo whooping it up about a block away at the ice skating rink. The RSO had to compete with a lot of extra sound effects from downtown Danbury coming alive.

The RSO has been performing its summer series concerts with a smaller ensemble, about one-quarter of its full assemblage, and it certainly had different acoustics in the band shell from its indoor events. It maintained their characteristic high level of musicianship, but could use some help with its sound system. The wind and brass players were given virtually nonstop opportunities for solos, playing with about a dozen strings.

RSO Assistant Conductor Petko Dimitrov led them in a selection of light classics and a few popular pieces that made for an enjoyable night of music. What better way is there to kick off a concert than a Rossini overture? They played the overture to the comic opera, "L'Italiana in Algeri," building up to the crescendo.

Dimitrov hit a few funny bones as he gave anecdotal introductions to the pieces, especially Mozart's "Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525." The strings brought the familiar Viennese themes to life, and by the end of the night's music, they had gotten the complete and undivided attention of everyone -- quite an accomplishment considering the distractions offstage.

They remained in Vienna, the musical center of the world 200 years ago, playing Strauss' timeless "Blue Danube Waltz," continuing downstream into Hungary toward Dimitrov's home in Bulgaria. The winds and brass spiced up the swirling gypsy sounds, and the one-man percussion section was doing triple duty in 3/4 time on snare, triangle, and tympani.

As her prize for winning a recent concerto completion, 14-year-old cellist Madeline Bouissou was featured in the "Hungarian Rhapsody," by David Popper. She quickly established her tenacity with rapid fingering while sensitively controlling the complicated tonalities resonating from her cello. Showing technical mastery at an early age, we hope to follow her progress in what appears to be a promising future.

I couldn't find any Sacher Tortes to nibble on during intermission, so with "Voices of Spring" by Strauss, Dimitrov bid farewell to Vienna. Embarking to South America, a different kind of passion for the dance came through with mambo and tango. Bouncy and rhythmic, Arturo Sandoval's "Mambo Caliente" had enough energy and volume to overpower the street noises.

The strings gave lush treatment to ballroom nostalgia in Glenn Miller's Moonlight Serenade," and the trombone was spotlighted in Sinatra's "My Way." They got the crowd singing and clapping along Dixieland style in the closing number, "Down by the Riverside." Everyone was glittering for the encore "Stars and Stripes Forever."

The summer series of "Concerts on the Green" continues to bring excitement to downtown Danbury, rain or shine. It's a treat to hear everything from the RSO to West Afrikan Drumming coming up this Saturday. All concerts are free and start at 7:30 p.m.