| Date and venue | Title |
|---|---|
| 22-Aug-2012 Usher Hall | Cleveland Orchestra 02 - Smetana, Lutosławski and Shostakovich |
 The items in the Cleveland Orchestra's second programme shared one feature; unusual form with regard to the number of movements. Having played the first four movements of Smetana's Má Vlast the previous evening, here they presented the remaining two. And although the playing was commendable, with warmth, clarity and impressive use of dynamics, little of the notion of terror or violence came across. Students of composition could certainly learn how easily dated the extensive use of diminished chords can sound, when employed in the hope of drama.Read full review... | |
| 6-Jun-2012 Sydney Opera House: Concert Hall | Majestic Brahms: Sydney Symphony perform Brahms and Shostakovich |
 Friday night's concert, entitled Majestic Brahms, was a concert of two very different halves, with Brahms' Second Piano Concerto comprising the first half and Shostakovich's Sixth Symphony the second. The Brahms is a Herculean piece with one of the most challenging solo parts in the repertoire. Lasting approximately fifty minutes, it is a concerto on a symphonic scale. Shostakovich's Sixth Symphony is in many ways a concerto for orchestra, with the composer using the scope of the orchestra to the full.Read full review... | |
