Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Oct 4 (From The Argus)

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Oct 4

1:15pm Monday 5th October 2009 in Music Reviews

The Brighton Philharmonic opened their 2009 season to a packed Brighton Dome and with a decidedly Slavic flavour focusing exclusively on a trio of Russian composers.

First up was Borodin’s Overture from Prince Igor. The piece allowed the orchestra to hit the ground running with a note-perfect performance of passion and sprightliness.

The Borodin was followed by Tchaikovsky’s Concerto for Violin op 35 in D Major. For this piece, the orchestra was joined by soloist Vasko Vassilev. The celebrated Bulgarian violinist gave what can only be described as a first-class performance.

His playing was controlled and disciplined but in a way that still allowed for moments of great intensity.

After the delighted audience gave Vassilev his well-deserved triple ovation, the orchestra returned with the third piece of the concert – Rachmaninov’s Symphony No 2 in E minor.

While the more languorous romanticism of this piece was perhaps initially overshadowed by the intensity of Vassilev’s earlier performance, the orchestra soon managed to reassert itself from under the shadow of the Bulgarian’s talent to offer up a performance of lyrical beauty, particularly in an impassioned second movement.

Conductor Barry Wordsworth is to be commended for the orchestra’s fine performance and based upon this opening outing, his hope for a highly successful 2009 season is surely all but assured.

Colin McBride