Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
October 26, 2018

The last time the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performed Beethoven’s monumental Ninth Symphony was two years ago under the baton of the orchestra’s former Chief Conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy. Here we had a Beethoven Nine under another former Chief, Dutch maestro Edo de Waart, who led the SSO from 1994 to 2003.

The expansive opening of the Ninth has been likened to the creation of the universe, but in de Waart’s hands – with biting horn entry and muscular tempo – it felt more like a large, powerful animal waking to hunt. While some listeners may favour a broader reading that leans into the vast mystery suggested by Beethoven’s music, de Waart gave the movement a surging energy – and at times a kind of swinging insouciance – that made for compelling listening, even if it felt a tad unwieldy in a few moments, with a full-bodied string sound and wild vitality.

The energy continued into the tightly wound spring of the Scherzo movement, taken at a brisk pace that showed off the nimbleness of the SSO winds – Todd Gibson-Cornish on bassoon and guest flute Francisco Lopez were particularly agile – and relaxing into the...