Clive Peacock reviews the National Youth Orchestra's Illuminate Concert at Warwick Arts Centre on Sunday 5 January 2025.

What an inspired choice of encore to conclude the National Youth Orchestra's Illuminate concert, bringing to an end their winter residence at Warwick University.

This gruelling week is a chance for the 96 new players to join established ones to forge a fine musical community which prepares them for additional public performances at The Barbican and in Nottingham.

Many in the orchestra are too young to have been influenced by Stanley Kubrick's film Eyes Wide Shut (1999) which used Shostakovich's Waltz from his Jazz Suite No 2 to brilliant effect in the opening moments of the erotic psychological drama.

Some 96 new players joined the ensemble on Sunday (image via Warwick Arts Centre)

One of four outstanding saxophone players delivered the opening bars, joined soon by her three colleagues, before being overwhelmed by their vast brass sections' colleagues with the horns starting a swaying action in unison, reminiscent of those US college marching bands.

Trumpets and trombones joined in this thrilling exhibition of excited players now on their feet, given a chance to let their hair down - sadly the cellists and double bassists needed to remain seated! What an encore!

Maurice Ravel's Bolero began the concert with those haunting opening bars of the flute – memories of Torvill and Dean winning their Olympic gold in Sarajevo came flooding back! Clever choreography permitted solo performing players to move centre stage as the unwavering repeated phrase in C minor progresses.

"What an inspired choice of encore to conclude the National Youth Orchestra's Illuminate concert"

Conductor, Jaime Martín energises his vast orchestra (160 plus players) as the excitement builds, reaching a boiling point before a sudden collapse.

Quite brilliantly performed, building the tension over the 15 minutes of this exhilarating work.

As contemporary works go, Iceland's Anna Thorvaldsdottir's Catamorphosis is one of the more challenging works heard at Warwick Arts in recent years. Five harpists combine with the extensive percussion section to produce a luscious susurration akin to tall grasses swaying in the breeze.

'Quite a night!' was Clive Peacock's summary of the performance (image via Warwick Arts Centre)

Her work is designed to reflect the fragility of the geology of her island home.

Carl Neilson's Symphony No 4, The Inextinguishable is the composer's attempt to bring hope to the world after the First World War.

Exciting brass playing, two timpanists competing, frenetic string playing and a remarkable rank of flautists helped spirits soar in the allegro.

Exhausting at times it certainly was; stimulating it certainly was, too, with a final flourish deserving the outburst of applause which followed.

Quite a night!!