Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
September 19, 2018

Arabella Steinbacher plays with such pronounced calm that you’d be quite forgiven for thinking that the Bruch violin concerto is mere child’s play to someone of her stature. But soon enough, you realise that her unflappable stage demeanour is in fact intense concentration, and what emerges is a perfectly judged reading that breathes new life into a decidedly musty old gem.

Arabella Steinbacher with Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Photo © Daniela Testa

It’s an account somewhat on the expansive side, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that Steinbacher is in any way indulgent. Try perfectly measured instead, with thoughtful, lucid playing that makes this old warhorse come up very fresh indeed. Displaying her trademark security and rich tone, Steinbacher’s approach to the first movement demonstrated an appropriately withdrawn, almost self-effacing quality. Lovingly shaded, she subtly gestured to the music’s almost improvisatory nature whilst almost being insouciant about its obvious beauty.

Her playing of the Adagio was something to be cherished, elastically dispatched with a poignant tenderness that eschewed stodgy sentimentality. Elsewhere, her precision in swift passagework was unimpeachable – her multi-stopped rhythms...