Anja Bihlmaier conducts a powerful NSO programme in Dublin

Anja Bihlmaier conducts the National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

By Andrew Larkin, 05 December 2025

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“hovers between the terror of the damned and the consoling radiance of grace”

Reviewed at National Concert Hall: Main Stage, Dublin on 5 December 2025

Mozart, Piano Concerto no. 15 in B flat major, K450

Bruckner, Symphony no. 9 in D minor, WAB 109

Boris Giltburg, Piano

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland

Anja Bihlmaier, 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

Paradise Deferred: Shelley takes on Schumann’s Paradies und die Peri

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

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.

****1

María Dueñas wows Dublin with poise, warmth and a touch of drama

Andrew Larkin, 3rd October

Spanish violinist María Dueñas dazzles with poised, luminous Beethoven before the National Symphony Orchestra and Hans Graf tackle turbulent Prokofiev.

****1

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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.

From sparkle to sublime: Anja Bihlmaier conducts powerful NSO programme in Dublin