Brighton Philharmonic play their socks off at the Brighton Festival

Joanna MacGregor conducting the
Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra
© Fernando Manoso

William Kentridge (director)

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra

Joanna MacGregor (conductor)

'Oh To Believe in Another World'

Brighton Festival

8pm, Sunday 17 May 2026

Brighton Dome

★★★★

Shostakovich, Dmitri (1906-1975): Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93

Oh To Believe in Another World
- film by William Kentridge

'Could (the BPO) rise to the challenge of Shostakovich’s mighty Tenth Symphony? Happily, yes they could, with some of the best playing I have ever heard from them'.

'Their skittering race fitting well with Kentridge’s ironic imagery on film of bustling transport and crowds, later skewering the idea of relentless progress with shots of the realities of harsh manual labour'

'Principal Horn Alexei Watkins delivered Elmira’s motif with secure warmth, while the flutes and piccolos screamed the D-S-C-H motto'.

'From the orchestra, we had a wonderfully acerbic solo from bassoonist Jonathan Price, and the brass hammering out that D-S-C-H motto at the conclusion certainly cried out defiance'.

'Neither the film nor the music gave us a clear answer, but the combined effect was nevertheless emphatically powerful'. 

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.