Gerald Barry's Double Bass Concerto fails to ignite in Dublin

By Andrew Larkin, 29 September 2023

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“the concerto ends with McDonald whistling nonchalantly, though to what purpose?”

Reviewed at National Concert Hall: Main Stage, Dublin on 29 September 2023

Glinka, Ruslan and Lyudmila: Overture

Barry, Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra

Stravinsky, The Firebird

Matthew McDonald, Double Bass

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

Jaime Martín, Conductor

Chopin and Franck reframed with elegance and insight in Dublin

Andrew Larkin, 20th March

In Dublin, Jean-Luc Tingaud and Louis Lortie bring clarity and purpose to two composers often ill at ease with the orchestra.

****1

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Andrew Larkin, 13th February

Alexander Shelley tackles Schumann’s sprawling Das Paradies und die Peri with conviction, shaping real momentum and drama, even if balance issues and Thomas Moore’s cloying libretto sometimes distract.

***11

Sułkowska-Migoń’s Dublin programme crowned by a white-hot Scheherazade

Andrew Larkin, 16th January

Works by Boulanger and Shostakovich pay off handsomely before Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, shaped with dynamic control and visceral energy, crowns a vividly played concert.

****1

Michelle Cann brings out the soul in Price’s Piano Concerto in Dublin

Michael Roddy, 12th December

Florence Price’s concerto brings the Dublin audience to its feet at the National Symphony Orchestra Ireland’s latest concert.

****1

Anja Bihlmaier conducts a powerful NSO programme in Dublin

Andrew Larkin, 5th December

Scintillating Mozart meets soul-searching Bruckner as Anja Bihlmaier and the NSOI deliver a programme of vivid contrasts and compelling musical storytelling.

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Anna Rakitina’s night with the National Symphony Orchestra

Andrew Larkin, 17th October

From an Anna Clyne Irish premiere to Tchaikovsky’s brilliance and Shostakovich’s grim wit, the NSO balances virtuosity with thoughtful nuance in Dublin.

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Andrew Larkin

Andrew Larkin is a pianist, composer and teacher from Dublin. Educated at Dublin and at Cambridge, he has performed all around Europe and Mexico. He currently teaches piano and composition in Dublin.

An exhilarating Firebird in Dublin, but Gerald Barry's Double Bass Concerto fails to ignite