Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali has chosen to close the Philharmonia’s 2023/24 season finale with a nationalistic Hungarian rhapsody, an angsty Russian cello concerto, and a rousing English anthem.  It’s a programme that starts with a bang, and ends somewhat meandering.

Rouvali kicks off proceedings with the orchestral version of Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (1860). It’s hard to imagine this piece was originally written for the piano, such is its abundance of character: the orchestra play with great exuberance, and Rouvali clearly has a lot of fun, lifting onto his tip-toes frequently to enjoy the Hungarian bounce of this expressive piece.

The heart of the evening is given to Shostakovich’s fiery Cello Concerto No. 1 (1959), performed by the steely and expressive Sol Gabetta.  Dressed in a chic but angular black-and-white jumpsuit, she plays the cello with great thrusts, swishes and swipes.  Like a sword-wielding combatant, she leans towards the violins, as if to challenge them; the whole endeavour played like one of the great Russian battles.  Gabetta is a superb performer, and a gracious one too; playing a lullaby of an encore that brought the audience to their feet.

The Enigma Variations (1899), Elgar’s tribute to his closest friends, crowns the evening with his famous set of character sketches that launched Elgar to his status as a national treasure. Most are played largely well, with characteristic pace and gusto, but the “Nimrod”, perhaps its most famous episode, is unfortunately raced at breakneck speed, and lacks the depth of feeling it so begs.  “Adagio” it is not — more reminiscent of a school orchestra playing to a metronome — an unusual momentary departure for a conductor that otherwise conjures plenty of magic for the Southbank’s home orchestra.

This concert from the London Southbank is also available to stream on BBC Radio 3.