Santtu and Nemanja Radulović with Philharmonia at Southbank Centre

Philharmonia and principal conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali brought an intriguing programme of Russian music to the Southbank on Thursday evening, with solo violinist Nemanja Radulović adding much-needed vitality to the experience. Despite the repertoire promising colour and verve, the orchestra’s performance was on the whole a little drab.

The opening trio of pieces from Aram Khachaturian’s ballet Gayaneh augured a full spectrum of atmosphere and character, but were oddly homogenous, a sort of polite delicacy prevailing throughout: Dance of the Rose Maidens wanted for warmth, and the better-known Sabre Dance, billed as “sheer shameless bravado” in the programme notes, felt almost elegant. The middle piece, Lullaby, was better suited to the light-handed clarity Rouvali brings out in the Philharmonia.

These were followed by a sparkling performance by soloist Nemanja Radulović in Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto in D Minor. Interestingly, the violinist’s typical earthy flamboyance was toned down, in keeping with the orchestra, and he brought a beautiful, virtuosic and rather refined rendition of the folk-like concerto. That said, his engaging, communal way of performing (connecting often with members of the orchestra and offering real authenticity throughout) was refreshing and immediately injected much-needed energy into the evening. In the first movement, a scintillating cadenza and a gorgeously executed duo with clarinettist Mark van de Wiel were highlights. The second movement allowed the richness of Philharmonia’s strings to properly show, especially in a ruggedly majestic low melody between the violas and cellos. The music is cinematic and infinitely delicate by turns, Radulović and the orchestra creating almost diaphanous pianissimos. Bassoonist Robin O’Neill was notable in his unison with the cellos, which started raw and organic and bloomed into a lovely solo melody. In the final movement, the soloist brought pure playful joy, coaxing the slightly rhythmically labile orchestra along (though some sizzling pizzicato turns in the strings redeemed them later on).

After a beautiful duo encore of Shostakovich’s Prelude from Radulović and principal violinist Rachel Chan, Philharmonia returned with Tchaikovsky’s seldom-played Symphony No 1 in G Minor… and the energy in the room waned again. One wonders if Rouvali’s physical stillness moderates Philharmonia’s characteristic vigour – with this conductor it’s all in the hands!

The first movement (Dreams of a Winter Journey) is an interesting blend of Classical sound and quirky syncopation with occasionally almost dissonant chromaticism. The second movement’s opening strings were lush and keening, almost Mahler-like, developing into a showcase of the orchestra’s stellar viola section. Steven Hudson’s seamless oboe melody was breathtaking, and the second subject was performed across the orchestra with honest warmth. In the Scherzo (meaning “joke”) there was unfortunately a lack of vitality or humour, so that there was little build-up to the timpani solo, which came off as a bit bizarre. The symphony’s Finale gave a glimpse of the energy and precision much of the rest of the programme needed, remarkably in the evolution of a breathless fugue. The chromaticism of the earlier movements returned towards the end of the piece, culminating in an insistent conclusion.

Overall, a rather stolid performance from Philharmonia with some tantalising moments, brought to life by the natural exuberance and style of Nemanja Radulović.

Alexandra Fletcher
Photos: Chris Christodoulou

For further information and future events visit Santtu and Nemanja Radulović with Philharmonia’s website here.