Mote Hall, Maidstone, 21 May 2016

What a splendid end to a splendid season! The all Russian programme looked sound on paper and proved to be so in execution. Borodin may have technically been an amateur but there is nothing un-professional about his ability to spin a musical line or summon up an oriental atmosphere. Maybe some of the colour we hear in the overture to Prince Igor has as much to do with Glazunov who completed the work as with Borodin but the final effect is as highly charged as one could wish for. Alongside the arch romanticism of the melodies we had the fine nuances of tone colour which demonstrated the strengths of the orchestra’s individual departments, and on this occasion highlighted some rousing fanfares.

If Prokofiev’s Second Violin Concerto takes a little getting used to it is, as Brian Wright noted in his introduction, well worth the effort. The second movement in particular is immediately accessible to anybody who knows Romeo & Juliet and there is a great deal of the ballet latent within this score.

Callum Smart showed a deep and intimate understanding of the work, bringing out the contrasts between the sudden moments of gentle lyricism and the brashness which comes to a head in the final movement. Quirky and challenging it may be, but with a performance as engaging as this, it more than justifies its place in the season.

Brian Wright argued that from his point of view Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony is his finest. On the strength of this performance he could well be right! This was surely the best playing we have heard all year and a tribute to the quality of the orchestra both as an ensemble and as individual soloists. The limpid clarinet solo at the start, the subtle vibrato from the solo horn in the second movement – suggesting a slight hesitancy, a whistling in the dark – and the lovely bassoon lines, all reflected the individual quality of the players. At the same time the precision and warmth of the strings was better than I recall it before. Perhaps the exigencies of rehearsing the Mahler had made a deep impact?

The new season opens on Saturday 15 October 2016. I am sure you will be there.