In the final concert of its season the Academy of St Thomas

Conducted by Christopher Adey and led by Ben Lowe performed with skill and style a programme of two works from the middle years of the 19^th century.

Colour, drama and stirring rhythms gave attractive character to Tchaikovsky’s First Symphony, which has the evocative title Winter Daydreams. Contrasts were striking, and time and again the confident woodwinds made telling contributions to the creation of atmosphere. The finale was a resonant climax with the trombones and tuba.

The excellent soloist in Brahms’ Violin Concerto was Amaury Coeytaux, a Frenchman who completed his studies in the United States and counts Pinchas Zuckerman among his teachers.

His poetic interpretation of the established classic delighted the audience. Shaping every phrase with unhurried delicacy and without the least touch of flamboyance, he conveyed a sustained mood of meditative reflection throughout. Technique was always put to the service of remarkably intimate expression.

The orchestra responded loyally with sensitive accompaniment, apart from a little over-exuberance at the end.

Christopher Smith EDP