The Dome, Brighton, 28 March 2015

Jaime Martin takes a very precise approach to conducting and his reading of Tchaikovsky’s fantasy overture Romeo and Juliet was just that. Crisp rhythms and tight ensemble made for a high level of intensity which did not slacken even in the more overtly romantic sections. The fight scenes were aggressive and edgy, leaving little doubt as to the outcome. The conclusion was cool and inevitable rather than sad.

Cellist  Andreas Brantelid may still be young but he has been playing the Elgar concerto now for fourteen years and his experience shines through in his very personal and convincing approach. In his hands this is not a melancholic work. Lines are spun effortlessly without exaggeration or unnecessary emotion. The second part of the first movement is almost jaunty. The slow movement has a comfortable, homely feel to it, a real sense of the English countryside at peace, before the finale burst into life with its bouncy rhythms and lively attack. Even the more reflective final sections cannot erase the sense of life and joy his reading brings to the work as a whole.

After such superb playing it was a pleasure to hear him play the Saraband from Bach’s first cello suite – a moment of reflective calm after the exuberance of the Elgar.

Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade has the misfortune of being over familiar on radio programmes where movements seem to come up daily. Though Jaime Martin’s approach was fast paced and extrovert he was not able to conceal the way the work often seems to drift aimlessly in a haze of orientalism. The finale was exceptionally well articulated from all concerned at a lighting pace which made up in enthusiasm what it lacked in content.