LIVING dangerously, that is what
players and audience found themselves
doing at an emotive concert by Dorset's
premier orchestra in which the spirit
was alternately uplifted and dashed.
The programme ran through a whole
catalogue of highs and lows, opening
with Rossini's joyous Overture to The
Thieving Magpie and concluding with
the Shostakovich Symphony No 9 in E
Flat, a serious challenge for performers
and listeners alike.
It has become apparent over recent
years that this orchestra, under the
baton of Robert Jacoby, boasts a
generous quantity of fine musicians
and nowhere was this better
demonstrated than with this bitter,
angry concerto with its many
opportunities for solo players to shine.
And shine they did, every one of
them, in a magnificent climax to an
evening that ravaged the emotions.
Elgar's Cello Concerto in E minor,
though very English in its structure,
has a similar intensity of feeling
when played by a gifted musician and
23-year-old Guy Johnston gave a
convincing display of power and
sensitivity that brought forth all the
greatness of this work.
A BBC Young Musician of the Year
and BRIT Award Classical Performer
winner, this young man has a dazzling
talent that it was a privilege to share.
