The Hallé. Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham, 22 March 2025, 5✩✩✩✩✩. Review: William Ruff.

Photo Credit: Angie Kremer..

The Hallé. Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham, 22 March 2025,

5✩✩✩✩✩. Review: William Ruff.

 ”A brilliant Nottingham debut for conductor Kahchun Wong.”

A new chapter in Nottingham’s musical history opened on Saturday night.  The Hallé (for many years Nottingham Classics’ resident orchestra) has a new chief conductor and this was his first appearance on the podium of the Royal Concert Hall. 

In his pre-concert onstage interview Kahchun Wong talked about his life and approach to music.  It was, to say the least, wide-ranging: growing up (and playing the trumpet) in Singapore; his inspirational training in Berlin; his musical passions (Tchaikovsky, Mahler…for their ‘juicy trumpet bits’) and his enthusiasm for cultures across the world (e.g. his love of all things Scottish, especially single malt whiskies).  He spoke with charm, modesty, a penetrating intelligence and much good humour.  It all bodes very well for the Hallé’s future.

If audience expectations were high for the concert, they certainly weren’t disappointed.  It was clear that change was in the air.  You only had to look at the layout of the orchestra on the stage: percussion on the left; double basses raised and spread out at the back; first and second violins split left and right.  It all made a difference to the sound.  And I can’t remember the Hallé sounding better.

It was a very clever move to start with the Japanese Suite by Akira Ifukube, a piece in which eastern traditions meet the western symphony orchestra.  Each of its four movements is inspired by a Japanese festival, starting with Bon Odori, an exhilarating dance in honour of ancestral spirits.  Its rhythms are those of the famous Japanese drummers and, like them, the music has a visceral effect on listeners.  Unsurprisingly the audience broke into spontaneous applause at the end.  The other movements are a mixture of gentle lyricism and vibrant energy.  New music, brilliantly conducted and a top-notch crowd-pleaser: a winning formula for Kahchun Wong’s first Nottingham appearance.  It was a nice touch that he held up his score at the end and directed applause towards the composer. (something that doesn’t happen very often).

Mariam Batsashvili joined the orchestra to perform Liszt’s 1st Piano Concerto.  Mariam may be petite but she lacks nothing in musical muscle power.  And the soloist certainly needs this in a work which opens with grandiose gestures from the orchestra answered by one of the most spectacular solo cadenzas in the repertoire.  Liszt’s music tends to the extremes: lots of highly charged virtuosity balanced with music that is delicate and nuanced.  Kahchun Wong summoned epic sweep from the Hallé whilst Mariam Batsashvili made even the breath-taking pyrotechnics sound expressive, thoughtful and poetic.

Finally came Brahms’ 1st Symphony: thrusting and purposeful in its outer movements, warm and tender in the inner ones.  The Hallé were on world-class form: lovely woodwind solos, the strings with impressive weight and depth.  Kahchun Wong shaped everything with insight and attention to fine detail.  His pacing and control of the final climax had a superb sense of inevitability and brought a huge ovation from the audience. The Hallé is clearly in very good hands.

The Hallé

Kahchun Wong (conductor), Mariam Batsashvili (piano).