English choral classics from 100 years ago, contrasted with a confident and effective new piece by Laura Mvula, all given strong performances by the BBC Singers and Sakari Oramo.
Revelling in the luscious orchestrations and sumptuous melodies, it was a rare treat to bask in such obvious delight from both conductor and orchestra.
Marking the centenary of the end of the First World War, Anna Meredith and 59 Productions' work proves a powerful, often surprisingly upbeat, commission.
With its vertiginous vocal leaps and broad intervals, Komsi's pure pitch-perfect soprano soared like the eldrich keening of a sea bird. The spareness and incantatory intensity were heightened by the BBCSO and Oramo.
An all-Sibelius programme given by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Sakari Oramo, featuring a UK première, an instrumental rarity and the First Symphony.
Sakari Oramo led an inspired BBC Symphony Orchestra in cultured performances of Sibelius, while Lisa Batiashvili produced a monumental UK première of Anders Hillborg’s evocative Violin Concerto No.2.
Like Sibelius, Florent Schmitt was another composer of great longevity. This concert saw an opportunity to hear his Symphony No. 2 paired with Sibelius' Symphony No. 3, with two piano pieces by Ravel and Franck in the middle.
A dream programme of works by Strauss, Berg and Sibelius, matched by performances from Sakari Oramo, Alina Pogostkina and the BBC Symphony Orchestra that really hit the sweet spot.
An eclectic programme from this Swedish orchestra which gave sharply defined performances in repertoire that, at first glance, had seemingly little in common.
Is traditional English pub grub popular in Helsinki? Perhaps Sakari Oramo got a taste for it during his Birmingham years for there was something “stout and steaky” about last night’s hearty performance of Elgar’s Third Symphony.
Sakari Oramo returned to Symphony Hall to lead Sibelius' Symphony no. 3 in C major and Busoni’s rarely performed, grandiose Concerto in C for Piano, Orchestra and Men’s Chorus with Kirill Gerstein.
Put Sakari Oramo in front of the BBCSO and invariably something magical happens. This concert included rare repertoire from two of Oramo's favourite Scandinavian composers.
In the glut of Shakespeare400 celebrations, the BBCSO and Sakari Oramo plumped for one of the more obscure works, based on one of the less popular plays.
Oramo and the BBCSO were dynamic in the UK première of Brett Dean's thought-provoking suite and provided a solid account of Richard Strauss' Ein Heldenleben.
An enterprising programme featuring a rare Haydn symphony, a new work by Charlotte Bray and Mahler 5, played by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo and with Guy Johnston as cello soloist.
The BBC Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo glistened and shimmered in Dutilleux and presented a 'no holds barred' Beethoven's Fifth while Håkan Hardenberger provided zing and reflection in HK Gruber.
Oramo and the BBC Symphony Orchestra negotiate a challenging first half with works by Bax and Dean, followed by a superb rendering of Elgar's first symphony
This all-English programme artfully combined Butterworth, Elgar and Anna Clyne – three composers a century apart yet tied together by poetic association.
After a lacklustre trio of concerts traversing the seven symphonies, Sibelius’ 150th anniversary Proms celebrations peaked with a gripping encounter with Kullervo.
This concert seemed to be an object lesson as to why Vaughan Williams is a great composer. It contained three contrasting pieces, each one demonstrating the composer’s ability to create atmosphere and capture the attention of audiences by the scruff of neck.
Sakari Oramo swaps his baton for a bow to join Janine Jansen in a fine performance of Prokofiev's double violin sonata; imperfect balance and coordination affect Jansen and pianist Itamar Golan's Prokofiev and Schubert.
It is a wonderful thing to hear the full range and colour of a symphony orchestra used to its full effect during the course of an evening's programme and tonight the BBC Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Finnish conductor Sakari Oramo showed the diversity, versatility and sheer joy which for me really brings the music to life.
Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Violin Concerto "Out of Nowhere" received its long overdue UK première by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Leila Josefowicz. Flanked by Sibelius’ Pohjola’s Daughter and Shostakovich’s Symphony no. 5, this was an exciting programme played brilliantly under Sakari Oramo.
A somewhat disappointing première of Colin Matthews’ Traces Remain could not stifle the abandon and verve of new Principal Conductor Sakari Oramo’s Eroica with the BBCSO at the Barbican.
Saturday saw the BBC Symphony Orchestra open their 2013/14 season with an evening of firsts. Not only was this Sakari Oramo’s first Barbican season concert as Chief Conductor, but the programme placed a première by leading “spectral” composer Tristan Murail alongside Shostakovich’s First Piano Concerto and Mahler’s First Symphony.
In what was only his second Prom as chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo led this fine orchestra on a journey through two of the best-known pieces of the 20th century.
However, the first piece to be played was the BBC-commissioned work by Param Vir, Cave of Luminous Mind.
On a hot, humid summer’s evening, Sakari Oramo made his debut as Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. That the occasion was the first night of the BBC Proms 2013 didn’t seem to bother him. The Finn’s combination of serenity and confidence – and just enough passion to assure us that he was enjoying it – set the tone for an intriguing, if oddly assembled programme.
Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall is by no means a modest-sized concert stage, and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra seemed to take up every square inch of it. The sheer size of the orchestra is initially what struck me, until the opening lines of Rolf Martinsson’s Open Mind, Op. 71.
It’s a fairly poor show that I hadn’t been to a Prom in years. Since it is all online and on the radio, there is the tendency to stay home and listen – but this concert was a reminder of quite how worthwhile it is to attend concerts in person. The power of live musical performance was exemplified by this varied programme, performed in a most varied and adaptive way.
