Royal Philarmonic Orchestra: From Paris to New York, Cadogan Hall ****

Gershwin is a true genius and he is put at the heart of this concert given by the Royal Philarmonic Orchestra for the start of a new series entitled' From Paris to New York', with three of the six pieces being by the extraordinary composer. The evening started with his 'Strike up the Band overture', followed by Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No.3 and Gershwin again for his Variations on 'I Got Rhythm'. The latter two featured piano from Boris Giltburg and just watching his fingers dance on the piano was a wonder to behold. I think he knew his talent, as he gave multiple curtain calls and an encore which I wasn't desperate for. The evening resumed with Bernstein's symphonic dances for West Side Story. There is no more emotionally intelligent and musically rich piece than this, taking well-loved musical numbers and interpreting them so that an orchestra can convey the pure emotion that Bernstein's legendary musical captured so well. 'Somewhere' is treated almost as a string quartet that gradually builds to the RPO's full orchestral majesty whilst Mambo is just joy to listen to. After an interesting, if not stunning, rendition of Stravinsky's Suite No.2 for Small Orchestra, the finale of Gershwin's 'An American in Paris' started. This piece introduced me to the power and wonder of classical music. Alexander Shelly successfully brings out the bustle and movement in the piece and each theme never tires and it is truly riotous (as much as is possible in a concert hall). This is a very promising start to what is looking like an entertaining series.