National Youth Orchestra/Kristjan Järvi, Leeds Town Hall

Our young musicians demonstrate yet again the value of music education

by Graham RicksonSunday, 09 January 2011

Kristjan Järvi: Swaggering, swaying and swooning like an illustration by Dr Seuss

A glance at the programme hinted at the identity of the orchestra: you don’t perform Prokofiev’s Scythian Suite and Janáček’s Sinfonietta in the same evening unless you’ve industrial quantities of brass and percussion to spare. This was riveting, transcendent stuff, and the most uplifting evening I’ve spent in a concert hall for years. Plus, the echoing barn of Leeds Town Hall is the ideal size for a 170-piece orchestra, a perfect place to experience Janáček’s hocketing brass fanfares. This was the closing concert of the NYO’s winter tour, and an incredible achievement for an orchestra that only assembled two weeks ago.

This was a moving evening and a timely demonstration of the strength of music education in the UK

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