The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s Masters Series in 2017 has thus far proved fiercely consistent, offering staples of the orchestral canon that, irrespective of conductor, continue to showcase the orchestra in impressive form. For Portraits and Variations, the sixth concert in the series, the ASO was led by English conductor Matthew Halls for a programme of Brahms, Ian Munro, Beethoven and Elgar, celebrating the fine art of variation.

Bookended by two monuments of the form, Brahms’ Variations on a Theme by Haydn, Op. 56a opened the concert. This was an auspicious start: the theme was taken at a proud and stately tempo, and there were plenty of colour gradations between each successive variation. The orchestra was warm and sumptuous throughout, but perhaps most impressive were the horns.

More notable was the work to follow. Ian Munro’s Flute Concerto, first performed by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in November 2016, must surely be one of the most interesting Australian compositions of the past decade. Based on eight Australian folk songs from a collection by John Meredith, the concerto is beguiling, charming and accessible, and wholeheartedly deserves a place among the flute’s core repertoire. In this performance, the ASO’s principal flute Geoffrey Collins appeared as...