Composers: Mark-Anthony Turnage, Béla Bartók, Modest Mussorgsky
Conductor: Edward Gardner
London Philharmonic Orchestra’s latest offering, Pictures at an Exhibition, provides a thrilling and well-curated programme. The premise of the show is a set of works that evoke the visual imagination. This invites the listener to engage with the music from an imaginative perspective and gain something deeper from the music.
Led with great ease by conductor, Edward Gardner, the evening begins with a bang. Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Three Screaming Popes, which premiered in 1989, is inspired by a series of paintings by 20th century artist Francis Bacon. This eerie visual reference provides an evocative inspiration for Turnage who sought to find “colouristic intensity and emotional immediacy” in his composition and has done so. Three Screaming Popes features modern instrumentation and unconventional playing alongside the classic orchestra set-up. This includes ghostly chords from an electric keyboard and aggressive slapping on double basses.
The second piece, Violin Concerto No. 1 by Hungarian composer, Béla Bartók was written in 1907-08 as an ode to his love, violinist Stefi Geye. The LPO bring this piece to life with gentle finesse, evoking a passionate and multi-layered love affair. Leading the concerto is esteemed violinist, Alina Ibragimova. She plays the delicate opening theme with profundity, bringing the audience right into her. Her performance is embodied, emotive and just a little cheeky. She is a joy to watch and listen to. Alongside the LPO, this concerto is filled with sensitivity and drama.
The evening finishes with Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Originally written for piano, it was written as a memorial for Mussorgsky’s friend Victor Hartmann and inspired by the late Hartmann’s paintings. The masterful orchestration was created by Maurice Ravel in 1922, decades after the original work was written and after Mussorgsky’s death. This orchestration lifts the work to where it was meant to be, bringing out the characters of the paintings and taking us on a vivid journey.
As the music plays, we stroll through the imagined gallery passing painting of a grotesque Gnome, a haunting Old Castle, through the noisy children of Tuileries and the squawking Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks. The exquisite final movement of The Great Gate of Kiev, is an ode to Hartmann’s unrealised design for a triumphal gateway in the Ukrainian capital. Gardner sends the orchestra soaring through this section creating an emotional and cinematic ending.
The LPO players’ solo abilities are brought to the forefront in this piece with standout moments from the trumpet and saxophone. LPO: Pictures at an Exhibition is an evening of transfixing skill and emotive storytelling.
Reviewed on 1 April 2026
