The welcome return to Sydney of conductor Pinchas Steinberg was highlighted by his excellent programming in last night’s concert. The combination of Tchaikovsky’s rarely performed first symphony and Prokofiev’s dramatic and visceral cantata, drawn from the film score of Sergei Eisenstein’s 1938 masterpiece, Alexander Nevsky, proved a winner and the audience received both works with enthusiasm.

In later conversation with the conductor, we both agreed that Tchaikovsky’s First Symphony is vastly underrated, and has been the victim of cultural hearsay rather than any serious reconsideration. The first movement is simply brilliant, and in the long, melancholic melody in the slow movement, we have one of the loveliest the composer ever wrote. If the last movement is a bit like a celebration in Red Square, we can put that down to youthful enthusiasm on Tchaikovsky’s part. Apart from a few horn fluffs, the orchestra delivered a dazzling performance.

In the film score from Alexander Nevsky, Prokofiev fashioned a tight, beautifully structured cantata essaying the victory of the Russian people; firstly over the Swedes (who were a major European power in the 1200s), and later the Teutonic Knights (read Nazi Germany) climaxing in the Battle on the Ice. This is the remarkable climax...