Work: The Fairy's Kiss (Le Baiser de la fée)

The Vienna Philharmonic’s strings prove vivid and intense in works by Catalani, Stravinsky and Schubert, conducted by Riccardo Muti. 

Trifonov's rock solid technique is applied with finesse to one of the world's most popular concerti; Stravinsky's Fairy's Kiss doesn't transfer well to the concert platform.

It starts like a scene from Mary Poppins, with penguin waiters nimbly weaving between waltzing couples, but ends with a deft blow to the stomach to deliver its environmental message.