Orchestra Wellington conducted by Marc Taddei with Alexej Gerassimez (percussion). Music by Wagner, Psathas and Schumann. Michael Fowler Center, September 17. Reviewed by Max Rashbrooke.

A probably apocryphal quote, often attributed to composer Gioachino Rossini, is that Wagner has “wonderful moments but terrible half-hours”. Fortunately, the Prelude to Act I of the latter’s opera Lohengrin belongs firmly to the category of “moments”. And it’s been delightfully played here by Orchestra Wellington, the opening string passages displaying quivering delicacy that slowly deepen and mature under the watchful eye of conductor Marc Taddei.

The latter also took the opportunity to teaser next year’s program; Entitled ‘Inner Visions’, it is inspired by painter Wassily Kandinsky’s views on what makes beauty in art. Expect plenty of references to Dionysus, the Greek god of merriment, wine and ecstasy – but, presumably, rather less to Schumann, after exploring the latter’s symphonies this year.

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This continued on Saturday evening with an interpretation of the Second, composed in 1846 after a long health crisis. Although Taddei described it as one of the most personal symphonies ever written, there was something almost impersonal about the orchestral playing – a slight similarity or lack of textural and dynamic differentiation. It got better as it went, however, with the third movement balanced between warmth and melancholy, and the fourth darker, harsher and more resolute, the brass particularly imposing.

The centerpiece of the concert was another impressive premiere from John Psathas, the titular Leviathan, performed by German percussionist Alexej Gerassimez. The latter, a thin thread of energy in metallic jeans and sneakers, hopped between an extraordinary array of percussion objects that included what the composer called a “Junk Metal Drum Station” containing scrap metal and other objects.

The piece was inspired by Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony, imagining how this great composer might react to modern environmental degradation. And it started in an intensely cinematic mode, all dull, ominous beats and high-pitched thuds.

But if humanity is ‘Hightailin’ [it] to Hell,” to quote the title of the first movement, the second movement, “The Final Brook,” reminded us of the human ability to enjoy nature, as whispering strings à la Carmina Burana gave way to a solo of bright vibraphone. Gerassimez’s splashes and water efforts, virtually inaudible under the orchestral sound, were less successful.

The ensuing solo on a water bottle, while inventive and a fitting reminder of plastic pollution, was a bit too long. But the final movement, “A Falcon, A Storm, or A Great Song?” powerfully summed up all that had come before, its propulsive energy balanced by positivity and a Beethovenian sense of hard-earned hope.