Johnston’s Tavener the highlight for the Brighton Philharmonic

By Nick Boston, 30 March 2026

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“ultimately, the meditative nature disguises any obvious calculation”

Reviewed at Brighton Dome, Concert Hall, Brighton on 29 March 2026

Vaughan Williams, Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Vivaldi, Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione: Violin Concerto in E major, Op.8 no. 1, RV 269 "La primavera” (Spring)

Richter, Recomposed: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons (Spring)

Vivaldi, Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione: Violin Concerto in F minor, Op.8 no. 4, RV 297 "L'inverno" (Winter)

Richter, Recomposed: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons (Winter)

Tavener, The Protecting Veil

Ruth Rogers, Violin

Guy Johnston, Cello

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra

Joanna McGregor, Conductor

A golden Turangalîla to celebrate the Brighton Philharmonic’s 100th

Nick Boston, 13th April

Joanna MacGregor and the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra bring their 100th season to a triumphant conclusion at the Brighton Dome.

****1

Blazing Bruckner in Brighton

Ken Ward, 27th November

After the overture, whose two movements, fast and slow, were adequately dispatched by a suitably small orchestra, the audience mistook the arrival of an orchestral horn player as that of the soloist himself, and burst into applause, which turned to laughter as the mistake became obvious.

Domingo Hindoyan's warm Bruckner 6 beguiles Liverpool

Peter Connors, 5th February

Schubert and Saint-Saëns provide an elegant first half before a change of tone and pace with Bruckner's Sixth Symphony.

****1

Routine Elgar but compelling Bruckner from the BSO

David Truslove, 25th January

Thrills and disappointment in equal measure in mixed performances of two core repertory works under Mark Wigglesworth at the Lighthouse, Poole.

***11

Ryan Bancroft, Guy Johnston and BBC NOW at the Proms

Alexander Hall, 2nd August

The eclectic programme of 19th-century concerto and symphony, coupled with a world premiere, failed to yield any knockout performance from this team.

**111

Grief and nostalgia trump a rarity at Three Choirs Festival

Simon Cummings, 31st July

Cecil Armstrong Gibbs’ largely forgotten Symphony no. 2, "Odysseus" proves exhausting, while works by Ireland and Howells tap into rich veins of mythical wistfulness and excruciating pain.

****1

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Nick Boston

Nick has an MA in Music, specialising in performance and repertoire. His particular passions are choral music, chamber music and opera, with a particular interest in early music. He sings in a number of choirs in the south east of England, plays the piano and occasionally dusts off the violin. He writes about music here.

Johnston’s Tavener the highlight for the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra with MacGregor