Britten’s Sinfonia da Requiem is one of his most stark and powerful works, his protest against the war that was devastating Europe at the time of composition.

The opening Lacrimosa was appropriately bleak and dark, but it lacked the searing primeval power and thrust that make this movement the truly terrifying and shattering experience it is meant to be. The Dies Irae, a dazzling orchestral scherzo, featured some great ensemble string playing and conductor Carlos Del Cueto imbued the movement with a real sense of urgency and direction. The conciliatory Requiem Aeternam featured some exceedingly beautiful playing from the flute section and built to a fine climax, though ultimately the performance was a frustrating one – because the crisis of the first movement had not been convincingly enough conveyed such a beautiful epilogue didn’t seem earned.

Chen Chen was the soloist in Beethoven’s third piano concerto, and her highly poetic and sensitive reading of the solo part was a pleasant deviation from the norm for this stormy concerto role. The orchestra seemed under-rehearsed, Beethoven’s uncluttered textures proving to be a brutal test on ensemble and tuning for the players.

In Vaughan Williams’ London Symphony the niggling problems that had beset the orchestra in the first half all appeared to melt away. The gleaming, effervescent orchestral textures and ever-shifting tempo markings of the first movement were masterfully and subtly controlled by Biggins, the orchestra extremely impressive in its unity and accuracy. The ravishing slow movement had magnificent sweep and real emotion, with this drive and strength of feeling being again replicated in the restless finale. This Symphony can seem prolix, but all parties conspired here to produce a truly outstanding performance that enthralled from start to finish.