A last minute concerto

By Helen Fraser, 10 February 2011

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

Reviewed at Royal Festival Hall, London on 8 February 2011

Mussorgsky, Night on the Bare Mountain

Grieg, Piano Concerto in A minor, Op.16

Stravinsky, The Firebird

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Charles Dutoit, Conductor

Freddy Kempf, Piano

Edusei’s Beethoven and Rangwanasha’s Strauss thrill at Cadogan Hall

Christopher Woodley, 26th February

Kevin John Edusei, Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra celebrate the joys of a life well-lived – rounded off to the sounds of larks ascending.

****1

Petrenko’s searing Shostakovich overshadows Grosvenor’s Beethoven

Nick Boston, 3rd February

Stylish Beethoven from Benjamin Grosvenor and dramatic Ustvolskaya from Yuriy Yurchuk, but Petrenko and the RPO’s blistering Shostakovich steals the show.

****1

Charisma and colour from Vasily Petrenko and the Royal Philharmonic

Chris Garlick, 7th September

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s BBC Proms matinee proves an ideal opportunity to demonstrate their strengths in a programme of Respighi, Milhaud and Vaughan Williams.

****1

Perception-altering Shostakovich from Serebrennikov and Petrenko

Mark Pullinger, 27th April

As part of the Southbank Centre's Multitudes festival, Shostakovich's Leningrad Symphony is given a stunning visual direction by Kirill Serebrennikov to match the RPO's gripping playing.

*****

A trio of exiled composers: Petrenko and the RPO at the RFH

David Truslove, 23rd March

Assured performances from the RPO as part of its ongoing “Lights in the Dark” series that brought career correspondences between three markedly different composers.

****1

Giltburg’s Beethoven enlightens the dark between Berg and Stravinsky

Roy Westbrook, 26th January

Vasily Petrenko frames his Royal Philharmonic Orchestra programme with Berg and Stravinsky, with Boris Giltburg playing Beethoven's Emperor Concerto in between.

****1

More reviews...

Helen Fraser

Helen is an oboist at the Royal College of Music. She is delighted to be based in London and so able to take advantage of the wide variety of concerts the city provides. She also loves to teach and is keen to use this and every other opportunity to interest new people in classical music.