This Proms Bristol concert brought together many different threads, and not just in its inspiringly varied music, conducted by Kirill Karabits and introduced for Radio 3 by the on-stage announcer, Sarah Walker.

Primarily, as Bristol Beacon’s Orchestra in Residence, the BSO is getting used to working in this recently restored venue. The acoustics are impressively clear and full, and the hall looks beautiful.

Also, being a regular feature of the BBC Proms, BSO was an apt orchestra to help bring the world’s greatest music festival to the west country for the first time.

The main work performed before the interval was Jennifer Higdon’s Percussion Concerto, in which the virtuoso soloist was Evelyn Glennie. This is direct, authentic music, which has a story to tell and knows how to tell it. Ms Glennie’s performance was engaging at every level and a real pleasure to watch as well as hear. As an encore, she played the enchanting Nostalgia by Vincent Ho.

The BSO played the short opening work, Akimenko’s Angel Poem-Nocturne, over a year ago as a memorial to those whose lives have been lost in the war in Ukraine. It provided the same unhappy commemoration here. Matching it at the beginning of the second half was Knell, a work by the Iranian composer Niloufar Nourbakhsh, which captured the eerie resonance of the mournful tolling of a passing-bell.

Catching the emotions of so much that had been heard so far, the final work was Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony. The work was appropriate enough in its exploration of fate at the time of uncertainty internationally and change at home, yet the image this performance seemed to convey most strongly to me was one of ‘blooming’. Mr Karabits judged the lyrical elements so that they did not become sentimental, and the exultant sections so that they did not swagger, but suggested a hard-won confidence and optimism. How much we need these qualities at this time. A full hall roared out its approval.

This summer has seen a series of “lasts” for BSO’s Chief Conductor as his fifteen-year term comes to a close. There was a special poignancy about this evening in Bristol as this was his final appearance as Chief, a position he hands on to Mark Wigglesworth. It is not the last we shall see of Mr Karabits, of course, as he will return to conduct Voices from the East events in the future.

The familiar slightly reserved smile and dignified poise on the podium, though, reminded us of many memorable performances by the BSO with Mr Karabits through the years. The sense of an era ending prompted some sadness, of course, but mainly pride at what has been achieved by the BSO during his tenure and gratitude for such a host of happy memories.

We also received these reviews in the national press: 

The Guardian  **** “a celebratory occasion was also a deeply thoughtful one”. 

The Times  **** “…impassioned, exhilaratingly fast at times, ever-shifting between light and shade. This was Kirill Karabits final performance as chief conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and his musicians did him proud.”

Catch up on the performance on BBC Sounds here.