MUSIC REVIEW : New Works by a New Orchestra : The Orange County Four Seasons Orchestra, conducted by John Elg, introduced works by John Gerhold and Kenneth Friedenreich at the Irvine Barclay Theatre.

In the second performance of its brief existence, the Orange County Four Seasons Orchestra continued to display some very rough edges Tuesday night at the Irvine Barclay Theatre. Still, while ensemble work may not have coalesced yet, interpretive powers did make forward strides under the direction of John Elg.

One of a proposed series of guest conductors, Elg led the musicians in a lively sprinkling of 20th-Century compositions, including premieres of pieces by John Gerhold and Kenneth Friedenreich. The program was billed optimistically as the “Annual Composers’ Concert,” implying the inclusion, at least once a year, of music by writers who still breathe (and assuming that the orchestra indeed will go on to further annual forums).

Friedenreich quipped that it was a “pleasure to be among people who appreciate music by living composers.” Unfortunately, those people made up a small audience.

They were rewarded, however. His Concerto for Flute and Viola (commissioned for this orchestra, as was Gerhold’s Presto for Piano) proved to be a tongue-in-cheek jaunt. Its three movements poke fun at tradition in a too-serious fugal section, an off-key oh-so-sentimental Andantino, and an amiable Mideastern flavored dance.

The composer identified friendship as his theme, though the effect seemed more like an amicable altercation between flutist Mary Palchak and violist Carolyn Broe, who is also music director. The flute finally surfaced over the viola, whose mid-range was more easily swallowed up by the orchestra.

Gerhold’s Presto is a brief, fiery piece, the kind of virtuosic vehicle that is sure to please. It is a percussive, sometimes-ominous work, often forcing the pianist to fight for mastery over a threatening orchestra. Soloist Brian Gould held his own with assurance and flair, and then returned with a sensitive and unpretentious reading of Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in G, Opus 32, No. 5.

Vaughan Williams’ “Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis” and David Diamond’s “Rounds for String Orchestra” laid the group open to more scrutiny than did the concertos. Elg and the players communicated passion and fun, though sectional precision frequently faltered. Among the first-chair soloists in the Fantasia, concertmaster John Sambuco commanded his plaintive part well.

Palchak nursed her exotic solo invitingly against harpist Margaret Klemm’s comparatively hard-edged accompaniment in Howard Hanson’s Serenade for Solo Flute, Harp and Strings.