The concert given by the 87 strong (I counted) orchestra, conducted by Alexander Shelley, consisted of:
1. Wagner’s Overture to Tannhauser
2. Rachmaninov’s Rapsody On a Theme of Paganini (Pianist was the Russian Vadym Kholodenko)
3. Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F minor
Prior to the concert we had a half hour chat with the conductor, who explained the details of the Rachmaninov Rapsody (variations). This helped in making sense of, and appreciating, the actual performance. During the performance it was awe inspiring to observe the pianist’s fingers’ high speed manipulation of the piano keys, always hitting the right ones !
The concert itself got off to a good start with the varied moods of the Tannhauser overture, ranging from the calm melodic, to the high drama high intensity sections of the piece.
Then the Rachmaninov Rapsody, finishing with the Symphony by Tchaikovsky.
Altogether a very good evening out, organised by Mike Reed.