Royal Concertgebouw/Mäkelä review – Proms showcase legendary orchestra and its star signing

<p><strong>Royal Albert Hall, London</strong> <strong><br></strong>The masterly Amsterdam ensemble were at the Proms for two concerts with their Chief Conductor Designate Klaus Mäkelä. In works by Berio, Mahler, Mozart, Prokofiev and Bartók there was dazzling playing and immaculate attention to detail</p><p>The 2025 Proms are turning towards the final stretch. That means it’s time for more visiting orchestras. The Leipzig Gewandhaus and the Melbourne Symphony are among this week’s arrivals. But the past weekend belonged to the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. No visit by Amsterdam’s finest is to be missed, but these two Proms in less than 24 hours brought something more – the starry presence of <a href="https://klausmakela.com/">Klaus Mäkelä</a>, who becomes the RCO’s chief conductor in 2027 and who currently has the musical world at his feet.</p><p>The obvious challenge in judging whether the two will become a perfect fit is that the RCO are simply so good. The warmth and precision of the Amsterdam string sound is legendary, while the RCO offers listeners wind playing to die for. So strong is the squad that, like a top football club, many principals who played in the visit’s first concert of Berio and Mahler were rotated in the second, consisting of Mozart, Prokofiev and Bartók.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/aug/25/royal-concertgebouw-makela-review-royal-albert-hall-london-mahler-janine-jansen">Continue reading...</a>