Simon Hale watches a CBSO collaboration at Symphony Hall.
No form of introduction was needed at Symphony Hall as the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra immediately gave a full-house audience what it had come for: a performance of the nation’s favourite piece of music.
The German-based Japanese pianist Hisako Kawamura stepped on to the stage in an elegant close-fitting sparkling dress to perform Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto, top of the pops in the 2025 Classic FM Hall of Fame.
It may have been down to the warm temperature in the auditorium or simply intent, but Kawamura took a surprisingly heavy approach to the well-known opening quiet chords. It made for a less dramatic build up to the ‘big chord,’ so we had to wait until she unleashed her series of arpeggios, and the orchestra introduced the first musical theme in all its passionate glory.
There was nothing lacking in conductor Kazuki Yamada (pictured)’s enthusiastically animated control of the orchestra in which he brought out the full sense of soulful yearning in the supremely emotional melodies, harmonies and rhythm. At times he was a little too exuberant, and in the climax of the first movement the orchestra almost drowned out Kawamura as she struggled to make the piano heard. But in the slower tempos of the second movement, she played with a richness of clarity and expression.
As the concerto’s mood shifted from melancholy, reflecting – so it is believed – Rachmaninoff’s depression over his first symphony’s poor reception, the orchestra and soloist collaborated blissfully, leading to a triumphant conclusion and justifiably rapturous applause. That collaboration is sure to become even stronger as Hisako Kawamura will perform the concerto again on multiple occasions this summer with the CBSO on its tour of Japan, beginning with a concert at Tokyo’s Suntory Hall on July 1st.
The tour will also include performances of the Fifth Symphony of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, which was also on the Symphony Hall programme. A similar work to the Rachmaninoff in terms of evoking wistful nostalgia and intense longing – Tchaikovsky having undergone a period of turbulence and self-doubt in his relationships at the time before entertaining a lighter mood – the orchestra delivered all the symphony’s emotional depth as well as its powerful melodic passages in what proved to be a musical tour de force.
The CBSO will continue its collaboration with the Orchestral Qawwali Project with a concert combining classical music with Sufi poetry and Indian Classical dance at Symphony Hall on Saturday 19 July at 7:30pm. For tickets call 0121 780 3333 or book online at cbso.co.uk
Pics: Hisako Kawamura – Marco Borggreve, Kazuki Yamada – Zuzanna Special
