Five nineteenth-century firebrands were summoned for the unveiling of York Symphony Orchestra’s season to a packed Lyons on Sunday with a programme that allowed 200th-anniversary nods to both Verdi and Wagner.

It was by way of Shakespeare that the evening began though, with Nicolai’s popular overture to his opera of The Merry Wives of Windsor. With its gently traced opening seemingly drifting into earshot, the strings gradually eased themselves into the acoustic, revealing a cohesive sound well complemented by the lyrical precision of the woodwind. The twists and turns of Nicolai’s writing were navigated with poise under Alasdair Jamieson’s assured beat.

After a rousing conclusion bolstered by muscular brass and percussion, it fell to Paul Feehan – Director of Music at Bootham School – to imbue Schumann's quintessentially romantic Piano Concerto with the necessary fervour. His performance proved delightfully understated, expressive nuance instilled through a well-judged ebb and flow. The ensemble offered sterling support, footing always swiftly regained following rare slips in clarity.

Post-interval, music from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde blossomed splendidly, the collective effort to sustain a seemingly infinite melody successfully ferrying the audience from the hysteria of the Prelude to the transcendence of the closing “Love-death”.

Liszt’s Les Préludes sprang from the same realm, initial portent giving way to mercurial episodes; the magnificent weight the band conjured also came in handy for Verdi’s Force of Destiny overture, a whirlwind of charm and gusto unleashed to draw a highly varied and enjoyable evening to its close.

Review by Richard Powell