SCO The Nutcracker Usher Hall Edinburgh 4th December 2025 Review
Scottish Chamber Orchestra’s "The Nutcracker" at the Usher Hall tonight was a clear statement that Christmas is fast approaching, and what better way to say it than in Tchaikovsky's music for this famous ballet that is now a part of the festive season for so many people.
Tonight's performance was a special one as, this time, the SCO were performing the complete musical score from "The Nutcracker" and, oddly, this is the first time that I have heard it performed live by an orchestra; usually it is just the best known musical highlights, and that can be a bit like getting only part of a story.
Both acts of this music were introduced by Jay Capperauld, who was appointed Associate Composer with the SCO in 2022. It was illuminating to hear from another composer just what he found so special about Tchaikovsky and I agree with him on everything that he said. As a composer, Tchaikovsky had the ability to not only tell stories in music, but to also paint almost whole scenes too, and for "The Nutcracker" he created not only a universal image of a perfect Christmas, but a wonderful fantasy land as seen through a child's eyes.
It was obvious that conductor Maxim Emelyanychev was having a lot of fun with this music and the smiles on the faces of so many of the SCO musicians said so much too. There is just something about this music that is not only timeless, but simply feels good to hear. Oddly the audiences at the first performance of "The Nutcracker" were it seems not quite as enthusiastic as we are today of this work, and the always very sensitive about people’s perceptions composer took that to his heart, never I think truly appreciating what special music he had created here.
Having no ballet on stage to distract from the musical score for me brought out so many details that I had overlooked before, but I must admit that still in my mind's eye, there were at times dancers performing.
What Tchaikovsky created for "The Nutcracker" was two acts of music, each the length of a standard symphony and within the larger narrative there are so many other little stories being told and, somehow, musically he connects them all together seamlessly.
There are so many magical musical moments that the Maxim Emelyanychev /SCO highlighted in this performance, but always for me, it is the Pas De Deux of The Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier/Prince that is the highlight of "The Nutcracker" and tonight’s performance of it was one of the best I have heard over the years. Tchaikovsky of course also created perhaps one of the most recognisable pieces of music for any ballet - "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" - and with his use of a celeste to create that delicate bell like sound, Tchaikovsky also made history by being the first Russian composer to use this instrument.
Having the opportunity to not only listen to this score without the dance, but to also see clearly how Tchaikovsky was using the different instruments of the orchestra to create this fantasy wonderland was for me like getting just that little bit closer to the original music through the SCO performance.
Review by Tom King (c) 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com.
Tonight's performance was a special one as, this time, the SCO were performing the complete musical score from "The Nutcracker" and, oddly, this is the first time that I have heard it performed live by an orchestra; usually it is just the best known musical highlights, and that can be a bit like getting only part of a story.
Both acts of this music were introduced by Jay Capperauld, who was appointed Associate Composer with the SCO in 2022. It was illuminating to hear from another composer just what he found so special about Tchaikovsky and I agree with him on everything that he said. As a composer, Tchaikovsky had the ability to not only tell stories in music, but to also paint almost whole scenes too, and for "The Nutcracker" he created not only a universal image of a perfect Christmas, but a wonderful fantasy land as seen through a child's eyes.
It was obvious that conductor Maxim Emelyanychev was having a lot of fun with this music and the smiles on the faces of so many of the SCO musicians said so much too. There is just something about this music that is not only timeless, but simply feels good to hear. Oddly the audiences at the first performance of "The Nutcracker" were it seems not quite as enthusiastic as we are today of this work, and the always very sensitive about people’s perceptions composer took that to his heart, never I think truly appreciating what special music he had created here.
Having no ballet on stage to distract from the musical score for me brought out so many details that I had overlooked before, but I must admit that still in my mind's eye, there were at times dancers performing.
What Tchaikovsky created for "The Nutcracker" was two acts of music, each the length of a standard symphony and within the larger narrative there are so many other little stories being told and, somehow, musically he connects them all together seamlessly.
There are so many magical musical moments that the Maxim Emelyanychev /SCO highlighted in this performance, but always for me, it is the Pas De Deux of The Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier/Prince that is the highlight of "The Nutcracker" and tonight’s performance of it was one of the best I have heard over the years. Tchaikovsky of course also created perhaps one of the most recognisable pieces of music for any ballet - "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" - and with his use of a celeste to create that delicate bell like sound, Tchaikovsky also made history by being the first Russian composer to use this instrument.
Having the opportunity to not only listen to this score without the dance, but to also see clearly how Tchaikovsky was using the different instruments of the orchestra to create this fantasy wonderland was for me like getting just that little bit closer to the original music through the SCO performance.
Review by Tom King (c) 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com.
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