Culture Year proves its worth at the Phil; MUSIC RLPO & Petrenko & Hesketh/Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool Orchestra back where it belong.

Byline: BY GLYN MON HUGHES Daily Post Correspondent

A YEAR ago this very column said this was make or break year for the Philharmonic.

The new season was the prelude to the much-heralded Capital of Culture Year, and it would preface the Philharmonic's renaissance as one of the most valued national musical institutions.

Last year, while enthusiastic, the audience barely filled half of Philharmonic Hall. Last night, the place was sold out for what turned out to be a challenging concert.

Time and again, we hear how the Cultural Capital has turned the artistic fortunes of Liverpool. Now we have the proof.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic appears to be back where it belongs, among those orchestras which do not flinch from programming unusual, challenging, works.

And, if nothing else, they appear to be bringing the audiences with them.

If that is the legacy of Capital of Culture, that's good enough for most people.

So, what of this concert? They opened with a work which was receiving its second outing. Kenneth Hesketh's Graven Image received its premiere at the BBC Proms in London in early August. Those of us present in the cavernous Royal Albert Hall may have been moved by the intensity of the work, but we heard it at its best in Liverpool, where the much drier acoustic brought out all the detail of this intense work.

Hesketh - the Phil's Composer in the House - dedicated the performance of the piece to the late Vernon Handley - "Tod" - a welcome visitor to Liverpool and the Phil's Conductor Emeritus.

Hesketh's work is a cerebral, introspective work which contains some magnificent tuttis.

His orchestration is fantastically colourful, proving his innate expertise.

There are many startling moments, none more so than in the woodwind choruses.

There was clever use of harmony and some intense melodic workings.

Huyton-born Paul Lewis was soloist in Beethoven's Second Piano Concerto.

While this was an efficient performance, it lacked soul.

The first movement fluent and jolly, but the humour was missing - and that was a shame.

Conductor Vasily Petrenko chose one of his signature pieces for the finale - Prokofiev's Fifth Symphony. It's a somewhat impenetrable piece, one which requires the utmost concentration.

The lyricism of the opening movement built up into a somewhat constant fortissimo, leading into a quite cataclysmic cadence.

The fast-paced, chattering second movement contained a quite fabulous episode for brass ensemble.

However, the centre point of this piece had to be the slow movement, which wrung out every last ounce of emotion before releasing into an ebullient finale which brought the audience - again - to its feet.

A great and rousing prelude for what has to be the season where the Phil asserts its musical authority once again.

CAPTION(S):

Vasily Petrenko last night mb1201008rlpo-3; Kenneth Hesketh, centre, with Vasily Petrenko, at the Philharmonic Hall last night Picture: MARTIN BIRCHALL/mb1201008rlpo-2