Page 175 - Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Coverage Book 2023-24

the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra led by Domingo
Hindoyan. The programme was ambitious and impressive; the
concerto was exciting and filled the space of the hall – aurally, but
also its layered and varied sound took up the auditorium tonally and
emotionally. Nobuyuki Tsujii, born blind, gained international
recognition when he won the prestigious Van Cliburn International
Piano Competition in 2009. His talent and technique are
undoubtedly captivating to listen to and watch.

Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 3 was paired with Bernstein’s
Symphonic Dances from “West Side Story”. I’m a huge “West Side
Story” fan, so enjoyed this immensely. It was just the right choice to
balance the Rachmaninov, playfully and keeping it light, working
especially well in the Prom context. The additional piece, Gabriela
Ortiz’s Clara, inspired by Clara Schumann, was spiky and a true
delicacy to listen to. Although contemporary, it really reminded me
of 20th c. avant-garde music, and balanced out the programme even
further. In both the Ortiz and the Bernstein we got to see a lot of
impressive moves from the percussion section, making us feel like
we had gotten a taste of everything RLPO had to offer.

I would always recommend attending a Prom, to anyone, of any age.
And what I loved about the Proms in general, is the diversity in age of
the audiences. Looking around, I saw children, teenage schoolboys,
young adults – it was so refreshing to see this at what is ultimately a
classical music concert. I think there still is a lot of work to do with
changing the perception of the classical world as being a somewhat
exclusive and fusty place, however it’s getting there, and the BBC
Proms are a great place to start.