On first glance a concert of Ligeti, Westlake, Bartók and Ravel might seem like a rather eclectic offering, but David Robertson’s programme is a rich study in orchestral colour. Opening with the chorale-like unison strings of György Ligeti’s folk-infused – almost Bartókian – Concert Românesc (Romanian Concerto for orchestra) to the brightly glinting piccolo lines of Bolero, Colour and Movement presents a fascinating palette of shades and textures.

The tactile quality of flute (Emma Sholl) and bassoon (Todd Gibson-Cornish) unison in the pastoral Andantino was particularly beguiling – as was the bassoon and piccolo (Rosamund Plummer) in the dance-like second movement, in which concertmaster Andrew Haveron fiddled up a storm. Horn calls rang out across a silvery harmonic from the double bass in the third movement before Haveron featured once more in the finale, in which darker currents give way to a kind of boisterous Romanian hoedown.

Diana Doherty and the SSO rehearsing Spirit of the Wild with David Robertson on February 21. Photo © Daniela Testa

Inspired by the wilderness of Bathurst Harbour on the south west coast of Tasmania, Nigel Westlake’s brand new oboe concerto, Spirit of the Wild teems with untamed life. Singing, sustained notes soared over...