One of the refreshing threads running through the consistently successful programming of the Orchestra of the Swan has been its commissioning of new works.
These cover the spectrum spanning young composers at the onset of their careers, to well-established names.
Among the latter is Alexander Goehr, 75 last year, and a vibrant member of the "Manchester School" of composers which also includes Peter Maxwell Davies and Harrison Birtwistle, as well as the late John Ogdon.
His work for OOTS, Broken Lute, officially premiered on Tuesday, reveals an unallayed ear for detail and colour in its well-paced narrative of an ancient Chinese tale of the power of music to build friendship between a patrician and a humble wood-cutter.
Instantly communicative, and casting a pervasive atmosphere of reflection, it highlights sultry alto flute and piping oboe (Diane Clark and Richard Weigall) - their eventual duet is magically eloquent - against an imaginatively-textured string orchestra.
Its six "stanzas" are introduced by spoken narrative (the persuasive tones of Kai Hoffman, OOTS' principal horn), and gradually unfold with a genuine sense of space and timing, and the performance under David Curtis was alert and well-shaped.
The rest of the evening was "Bach . . . by arrangement", showcasing recent composers' response to their great predecessor.
Steve Martland's string arrangement of the famous D minor Toccata and Fugue was arrestingly lean and muscular, Copland's Nonet, written for almost the same string complement as Bach's third Brandenburg Concerto, brought a wonderful sustained stillness, and Stravinsky's Dumbarton Oaks paid homage to the same concerto in a tensile, pungent reading.
And the Brandenburg itself was jaunty and clearly-articulated, the problematic two-chord middle movement given to an improvised violin flourish. OOTS should do the complete set.
