ILVAN VOLKOV’S career has blossomed since being appointed young conductor in association with Northern Sinfonia at 19, and the first conductor of the Young Sinfonia ten years ago. Now chief conductor with Scottish Symphony Orchestra, he returned to the region to conduct a challenging mix of music at The Sage.
The concert opened with a cleanly executed reading of Stravinsky’s Octet for Wind Instruments.
In complete contrast was Haydn’s Symphony No 60 Il Distrato.
All was preparation for Shostakovich’s Symphony No 14. Not for the faint-hearted, the unremittingly gloomy work was written as the composer contemplated his own mortality.
In the opening, De Profundus, baritone Neal Davies’ cavernous voice seemed to well up from the bowels of the earth.
Soprano Joan Rodgers hurled herself into the anguishing opening lines of the next movement. The song, Lorelei, featured fine exchanges between the two soloists.
The highlight had to be The Suicide, with Rodgers’ voice entwined in exquisite agony with a mournful cello, played with heartfelt conviction by Louisa Tuck.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here