Normal rules do not apply when global superstar Lang Lang gives a concert. The ushers face an impossible task trying to prevent punters from filming with mobile phones or taking selfies, large groups of pre-teen children fidget and chatter, and the auditorium is alive with the sound of mucus and unsuppressed coughing.

A steady tattoo of dropped programs and heavier objects punctuates the performance, sometimes breaking the spell that the pianist weaves.

That said, it is always a memorable occasion and for many, especially the kids in the front rows, one that they’ll remember all their lives.

For this latest visit for Sydney Symphony Orchestra – the first since 2019 – Lang Lang pairs his bravura treatment of Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with a Sunday afternoon recital of storied works from the French and German repertoire.

Lang Lang. Photo Olaf Heine/Deutsche Grammophon

He starts with a track from his latest album, Fauré’s Pavane, which is taken too slowly and quietly for my ears. From a programming point of view, however, this is a delightful way to start the first half – a well-known tune ideal for settling down the younger members...