Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, Camilla Roberts (soprano), Stephen Bell (conductor)

This concert could have been so sad, being dedicated to the loving memory of violinist Melanie Hornsby, who died last summer. However, while the Prelude and Liebestod (love-death) from Wagner’s ‘Tristan and Isolde’ and Richard Strauss’ ‘Four Last Songs’ express deep melancholy, they also deliver much of the hope and consolation of the other dedicatee, Macmillan Cancer Support. The joy in this magical music, so ardently realised by all the performers, made a fitting and inspiring tribute.

A contemporary of Rachmaninov, Ravel and Vaughan-Williams, Reinhold Gliére wrote his charming First Symphony in 1900 but it was new to everyone I asked. Youthful, energetic and full of bright Russian tunes it made a vital contrast to the more sombre first half.

Dome Concert Hall,
10 February 2019

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