Ravel’s La Valse and Rachmaninov’s Symphonic Dances are often programmed together; it’s not simply that the two works share a dance theme but on a deeper level the way in which both pieces evoke a vanished world in which they find common ground. It was with these works that the Bergen Philharmonic and chief conductor Edward Gardner rounded off their visit to Edinburgh, following their concert performance of Strauss’s Salome.
In keeping with the general crowd-pleasing tenor of the programme the concert also featured pianist of the moment Víkingur Ólafsson who joined the orchestra in Schumann’s Piano Concerto with mixed success. Ólafsson’s limpid, free-flowing playing didn’t quite gel with the orchestral playing; the accompaniment feeling tentative rather than genuinely connected. The delicate, bell-like sonorities Ólafsson drew from the piano were exquisite but at times a more extrovert approach would have been welcomed to create a genuine dialogue between soloist and orchestra.
