LSO / Davis, Barbican - review

After a less exhilarating first half, the concert suddenly sprang to life. The easy-going "Phlegmatic" second movement and the "Sanguine" finale were delivered with the verve and youthful exuberance the work demands, while the emotional profundity of the "Melancholy" third movement was given its due. 

Once or twice Davis allowed the big-hearted to verge on vulgarity - giving the brass section its head is rarely wise. But this was a fault in the right direction, more than can be said for the performance of Haydn's Symphony No. 98 in B flat. Here Davis's greatness of heart produced a reading that too often sounded merely ponderous and frankly dull.

A brief flash of buffo wit in the finale aside, the buoyancy and sparkle one expects in Haydn were sadly lacking.        

Though sluggish also in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 in G, Davis's tempi were here offset by Mitsuko Uchida's exquisite pianism, with results that exuded mystery and poetry. Both Uchida and the Nielsen are worth catching when the concert is repeated next Tuesday or when the Nielsen cycle comes to a conclusion next Sunday.

I see from the programme that Tuesday's concert, intriguingly, is "recommended by Classic FM", yet is to be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. Figure that one out.

LSO/Davis