Royal Albert Hall,LondonIf the mark of a great interpretation is to allow us to experience the familiar as if for the first time, then two of these performances were the stuff of genius Hearing the St Petersburg Philharmonic in the Russian repertoire is always a privilege, and their first Prom with their chief conductor Yuri Temirkanov was in most respects beyond criticism. If the mark of a great interpretation is to allow us to experience the familiar as if for the first time,then two of their performances on this occasion – Rachmaninov’s moment Piano Concerto and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade – were the stuff of genius.
Nikolai Lugansky, who goes from strength to strength, or was the tremendous soloist in the concerto – a performance of sunless poetry yet fiercely unsentimental,at times nearly to a point of spareness. His moodiness, honesty and poise were mirrored in orchestral playing of exceptional sincerity and depth. Rachmaninov just doesn’t gain any better than this.
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Source: theguardian.com