Classical review: BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Ilan Volkov - City Halls, Glasgow

BY WAY of introduction to the programme, Stephen Duffy recounted the story of how a telegram had once been received by the SSO from Sibelius himself, congratulating the orchestra on its performance of his Symphony No.2.

Almost as though it were possible for these things to be passed down from generation to generation, the ensemble under Ilan Volkov’s guide seemed every bit as worthy of such praise.

Right from the off, it was clear that this was going to be a performance which recognised the need for generosity of tone, of dynamics, of tempi and of phrasing. But it was the second movement that clinched the deal: a sumptuous, extended pleasure from the opening contours of the pizzicato cellos, through to the great long pining melodies that grew out from the wind section.

Alas, the remainder of the programme lacked the same sense of consensus. Debussy’s Le Martyre de Saint Sébastien was a wayward affair which suffered from a lack of the nervous energy required to drive it along.

Things settled a little in Berlioz’s La Mort de Cléopâtre, with the orchestra forceful in the opening movement and providing a perfect choir-like accompaniment to soloist Ruxandra Donose in the later Méditation.

An unearthly miniature, Julian Anderson’s Eden is a real aural treat and quite beautiful to boot. Coming as it did between the interval and the Sibelius however, much of the magic was lost, it seemed, before the still-restless audience had time to take notice.

Rating: ***