Appearances by visiting ensembles are already fewer and fewer, and this opening night of the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra’s five-date British tour saw them rapturously received by the Beacon audience, as though appreciating the administrative hoops negotiated as much as the generous warmth of their playing. The Strasbourg has a longstanding dual French and German tradition, but this was a predominantly French programme, with the appearance of Nikolai Lugansky as soloist in Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Concerto adding to its appeal.
It’s a characteristic of orchestras for whom opera is a big part of their performing – in this instance with the Opéra National du Rhin – that they listen with particular acuity both to soloists and to each other: the rapport here between Lugansky, conductor Marko Letonja and the players ensured deeply sensitive responses to the exchanges of melodic material, elegant dovetailing attuned to subtle inflections. Lugansky is known for his Rachmaninov, and his control of the gradual crescendo from pianissimo to blazing fortissimo in the opening bars was as meticulous as it was dramatic. Throughout the concerto, tenderness and power were in perfect balance, heartstrings tugged, then jolted by injections of urgent, dazzling virtuosity.
