Music review: Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Usher Hall, Edinburgh

Robin Ticciati ended his final season as principal conductor of the Scottish Chamber orchestra (SCO) on a high note with an eclectic programme which captured the essence of his special relationship with the orchestra over the past 10 years.
Robin Ticciati PIC: Marco BorggreveRobin Ticciati PIC: Marco Borggreve
Robin Ticciati PIC: Marco Borggreve

Music review: Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Usher Hall, Edinburgh ****

Bach is challenging at the best of times and his Orchestral Suite No 4 in D calls for absolute precision, especially in the timing. While there were a few wobbles in the fugal overture, Ticciati quickly got things back on track. His tempi might have been a touch on the fast side, but the orchestra were up for the ride. Clarinet Concerto was the ideal vehicle for SCO’s principal clarinet Maximiliano Martín. He has a warm lyrical tone which shone through this episodic, jazz-infused work.

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He further delighted the audience with his foot-tapping encore, Paquito D’Rivera’s Contradanza.

But it was the brilliance of sound in the SCO’s stylish melding of past and future in Dvořák’s New World Symphony that most clearly demonstrated Ticciati’s legacy.

Every phrase was exquisitely turned, there was meticulous attention to detail and the music making between Ticciati and the orchestra was pure poetry.