Michael Houstoun is an authoritative presence on the NZ musical scene and, as guest soloist with the Auckland Chamber Orchestra, he caught the youthful brio of Beethoven's B flat Concerto.
The pianist dovetailed his lines through and around those of his orchestral colleagues, with particular grace and discretion
in the Adagio. In the zesty Finale, he seemed to be taking an almost conspiratorial lead.
The orchestra had set the evening off confidently, if perhaps a little stolidly, with Mozart's Marriage of Figaro Overture, conductor Peter Scholes making comparatively little of its dancing woodwind lines.
In an unexpected entr'acte, ACO chairman Frank Olsson, in his best stentorian Swedish baritone, serenaded us with Kander and Ebb's Cabaret.
The point was taken; the loyal, sizeable ACO audience had indeed put down their knitting, books and other things to come to this final concert of the season.
Arvo Part's woodwind and percussion version of his Fratres is difficult to bring off and, despite occasional bumps in texture, Scholes' skilled ensemble illuminated the Estonian composer's obsessional, tintinnabulating chordal mantras.
At this point, Scholes surprised us by introducing the various instruments on stage. Musical samples included Andrew Uren's clarinet wailing Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and bassman Daniel Stabler dishing up some pizzicato furioso on the jazz side. Best of all was leader Dianna Cochrane's Mozart - four snappy bars from his G major Violin Concerto.
The concert ended with Haydn and it was indeed special to experience the composer's London Symphony in such a intimate venue.
Scholes approached the score with considerable imagination.
Standouts included flautist Adrianna Lis' poise and sheen and the absolute gusto of Cochrane and her strings in the Finale's merry dance.
