Chemistry between Gergiev and LSO on display in Prokofiev masterpiece.

Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
November 24, 2014

First, some general observations: both the Berlin Philharmonic and the Royal Amsterdam Concertgebouw were already on stage tuning while the audience was entering the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House.  The London Symphony, in contrast, drift on, just as the BBC Symphony Orchestra did on their 2003 visit. No hint of European crispness here. I was particularly bemused by the languid entry of the Leader. Next, Valery Gergiev conducts with something the size of a glorified toothpick!

When I reviewed his Prokofiev symphony cycle for this magazine some years ago, I was disappointed at the lack of sparkle and general lethargy of the first movement of the Symphony No 1, the so-called Classical. These misgivings vanished immediately at the London Symphony Orchestra’s first Sydney concert. The tempi are still moderate but the sparkle is there. All the works performed in this concert provided no room for passengers, as one would expect from a...