LSO/Haitink/Ibragimova review – he cast an instant spell

Barbican, London
When Bernard Haitink and the London Symphony Orchestra get together, the high-level musical organisation is profound in a way few can rival

When Bernard Haitink gave his downbeat to the London Symphony Orchestra, it was as though he had cast an instant spell. There was no visible demand for the subtle dynamics and impeccably modulated tempi that flowed from the LSO players for the next two hours in music by Mozart and Mahler. But when this conductor and this orchestra get together, the high-level musical organisation seems instant and profound in a way that few can rival.

Haitink chose Mozart’s G major violin concerto, K216 for this concert, and Alina Ibragimova paid him the compliment of learning the piece for the occasion. The performance had Haitink’s restrained imprint on it from the very start, but Ibragimova brought characterful attentiveness to every bar of the opening allegro. The adagio was spun out in a long lovely line by conductor and soloist, and Ibragimova gave a very personal quietness and depth to the brief, introspective cadenza.

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