Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, The Dome, Brighton, 31 December 2018

The New Year concert is always a pleasure, and a highlight of the whole season, and under Richard Balcombe’s gently deft guidance it was as good as I can recall.

The familiar came up as fresh as ever – extended excerpts from Die Fledermaus and three pieces by Franz Lehar – alongside Strauss’ Explosions Polka and Suppe’s Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna. Another regular innovation was the inclusion of waltz music from Britain, opening with Robert Farnon’s Westminster Waltz and the nostalgic delights of Mantovani’s orchestration of Charmaine.

Soprano Ilona Domnich provided the operatic pieces. Her lower register does not have the impact of the top of the voice, which made for some difficulty of balance in the opening sections of Meine Lippen and Vilja, but the top of the voice is so strongly focused that the coloratura elements are thrilling. Her encore aria, Alexander Alabiev’s The Nightingale, proved to be the most captivating item of her repertoire.

The orchestra demonstrated the strengths of its individual performers with a fine cello solo in the Suppe and moving harp arpeggios in the hushed moments of the Gold und Silber waltz.

The first half concluded with the Emperor Waltz and the whole afternoon – inevitably – with the Blue Danube and Radetsky March to which we clapped with impeccable precision sans direction!

An impressively full house responded with enthusiasm throughout. Let us hope they are encouraged to come back for more.

The next concert brings cellist Thomas Carroll with works by Prokofiev, Schumann and Mendelssohn. www.brightonphil.org.uk