Performer: Nicola Benedetti

Nicola Benedetti’s Elgar is a slow burn in Edinburgh’s Usher Hall, but Kirill Karabits’ Firebird instantly ignites.

As gifts to the Philarmonia's 80th birthday season, Nicola Benedetti gives a barnstorming account of Elgar's Violin Concerto before Cristian Mӑcelaru gets emotionally drained by La Mer.

Wynton Marsalis’ Violin Concerto in D is a sprawling smorgasbord of a piece, held together by Nicola Benedetti’s ferocious commitment and personality, along with a Mallonee premiere and perfect Petrushka.

Sir Antonio Pappano's skills as a communicator are clear, whether he's speaking or conducting, but it's the depth of the LSO's sound that impresses most as it launches its EIF residency.

Sir James MacMillan's Second Violin Concerto receives a convincing reading from Nicola Benedetti, bookended by fine performances of celebratory Shostakovich from Gianandrea Noseda and the LSO.