Matvey Demin’s stellar UK debut flanked by an invigorated Gergiev

By Young-Jin Hur, 08 October 2019

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“One could see how the clear and bright sonority of Demin’s flute... won him such prestige”

Reviewed at Cadogan Hall, London on 7 October 2019

Rimsky-Korsakov, Mlada: suite

Ibert, Flute Concerto

Borne, Fantasie Brillante sur Carmen

Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique, Op.14

Matvey Demin, Flute

Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra

Valery Gergiev, Conductor

Miraculous Russians: Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky in Florence

Elena Luporini, 11th December

Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra call in at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino for a programme of Prokofiev, Bartók and Stravinsky... and Gergiev picks up the keys to the city too.

****1

Alexandre Kantorow wows with the Mariinsky Orchestra in Antwerp

Marc Haegeman, 15th October

Think of a poet irresistibly teasing your senses by his creative use of rhythm, his unpredictable style of speech and his unfailing imagination.

****1

In Rimsky's Kitezh, Gergiev eventually weaves some Russian magic

Mark Pullinger, 8th October

In Gergiev's late, late show, Mao Fujita impresses in Tchaikovsky, but episodes from Berlioz' Roméo et Juliette are given a Shakespearean speed read.

***11

Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky bring a Russian programme to Lucerne

Edward Sava-Segal, 30th August

The very talented Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov is an artist whose musicality transcends the mere virtuosic prowess.

****1

An ideal troika at Cadogan Hall

Roy Westbrook, 4th March

Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra return to Cadogan Hall for the second of their Petipa/Tchaikovsky tributes.

****1

Devastating and dark Pathétique from Gergiev and the Mariinsky

Marc Haegeman, 18th November

Deeply moving and often terrifyingly dark, Gergiev and the Mariinsky took us on a devastating ride towards the abyss which eventually left me grabbing for a rope.

*****

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Young-Jin Hur

Young-Jin Hur is a PhD candidate in psychology at University College London, researching themes in aesthetics centred around the sublime. An ardent CD collector, Young-Jin finds much affection in symphonic and orchestral works from between the mid-19th and mid-20th centuries, especially of Austro-German, Nordic, and Russian traditions, and in sacred vocal music. He also writes for MusicWeb, Corymbus, and Seoul Arts Center. He tweets at @yjhur1885 and blogs at Where Cherries Ripen.