The Hallé – Benjamin Grosvenor (piano) Gareth Small (trumpet) Brighton Festival Chorus Mark Elder (conductor)

I always knew this would be a splendid concert and my high expectations were wonderfully exceeded! The Hallé captured the magical quality of Janáček’s ‘The Cunning Little Vixen’ Suite, playful, fanciful, feral.

Benjamin Grosvenor and Gareth Small delivered all the punch and irony you could want from Shostakovich’s thrilling ‘Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and Strings’. Sir Mark’s scrupulous direction brought out the best of his soloists’ masterly performance.

The Brighton Festival Chorus and an excellent solo quartet (Giselle Allen, Madeleine Shaw, Peter Berger and Clive Bayley) then joined the Hallé for Janáček’s ‘Glagolitic Mass’. This almost symphonic work demands an exceptionally wide range of colour and passion; the Hallé delivered!

Brighton Dome Studio Theatre, 22 May 2015

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