Orchestra of Opera North

Leeds Town Hall

A wondrous sense of space and stillness pervaded this pellucid performance of the Prelude from Mussorgsky’s opera Khovanschina by the Orchestra of Opera North, conducted by Jac van Steen.

Subtitled Dawn Over The Moskva River, this lovely piece is really a miniature tone poem of subtly-muted wintry colours. The closing descending phrases on tremalando high strings beautifully played double pianissimo in some way reflecting the ethereal opening of the Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor.

Here, muted violins soar upwards to stratospheric heights underscored by a mournful solo clarinet two octaves below, preparing the way for the soloist’s entry.

The laser-like accuracy of Chloe Hanslip’s placing of notes ushered in a deeply expressive interpretation of this concerto that might have seemed hard to surpass. Hanslip was so totally involved in the performance and turned around to watch the orchestra during the brief moments of respite for the soloist.

The Orchestra of Opera North were perfect collaborators under the baton of Jac van Steen who achieved faultless balance with the soloist. The inner details of the orchestral score were miraculously revealed in all their pristine glory.

Elgar’s Symphony No 1 in A flat similarly benefited from Steen’s delineation of orchestral textures be it in the expansiveness of the first movement, the unbridled rhythmic energy of the second movement or the transition into Elgar’s intensely personal Adagio. Steen held something back for the swaggering confidence of the finale – a glorious expression of pomp and optimism crowned by some of the composer’s finest writing for the brass section and played with burnished golden tone. The Orchestra of Opera North’s performance of Elgar’s First Symphony was a revelation.

Geoffrey Mogridge