It’s not too often that one finds a full house at Hamer Hall on a cold Thursday evening. But such is the case when the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra offers a program pairing Czech classics with the Australian premiere of a new piano concerto performed by international guest artist Kirill Gerstein.  

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Photo © Laura Manariti

Opening with Smetana’s well-loved symphonic poem Vltava (The Moldau) from Má vlast, two murmuring flutes begin the scenic course of the river through forest, meadow and mountain. The stereophonic effect of Smetana’s orchestration was beautifully captured, with shimmering violin and harp moments. Yet one wondered whether the hunting calls and village festival scenes might have benefited from greater rhythmic vitality. Conductor Jaime Martín’s measured tempo seemed to produce a sense of reverence befitting Smetana’s ode to his homeland, though at the cost of some programmatic immediacy. 

Francis Coll’s Piano Concerto, co-commissioned by the MSO, presented a starkly different musical world. A protégé of British composer Thomas Adès, Spanish-born Coll’s bold musical language draws inspiration from visual art—he grew up surrounded by paintings in his...