Those classical-meets-jazz blues

This was no ordinary Rhapsody in Blue, however. The jazz pianist Marcus Roberts and his trio were presenting their take on the work in which the piano solos are expanded into jazz breaks, introducing improvisation, riffing and New Orleans rhythms effectively to create a new piece.

There's no objection in principle. As Bernstein wickedly remarked, you can play the various sections in almost any order without causing serious damage. But Roberts's solos, which were as much Lisztian infill as genuine jazz inspiration, didn't bring much to the piece. The contributions of his partners, Roland Guerin (bass) and Jason Marsalis (drums), added even less.

Nor did the trio's encore, a stop/start deconstruction of the four-note motif of Gershwin's I Got Rhythm, ever pick up any real momentum.

To add to the misery, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra sounded like fish out of water in the Rhapsody, while the Three Dance Episodes from On the Town proved that whatever else the BBCSSO might be, they are not jazzers.

This wasn't their night. For under Robert Spano the taut rhythms of Petrushka, too, appeared overly brittle, while the famous trumpet solo was scrambled.

The intentions of the concert were good, but both classical musicians and jazzers sounded uncomfortable playing away from home.

BBC Proms: Marcus Roberts Trio, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Spano
Royal Albert Hall
Kensington Gore, SW7 2AP