"One of the great disasters of operatic history," was how the 1953 opening night of Britten's Gloriana was described at the time - and that was by one of the composer's friends. It's not hard to see why the opera didn't initially catch on. The audience of New Elizabethan grandees at the Covent Garden premiere, six days after the coronation, must have been expecting something unambiguously celebratory of their new young queen. Instead they got Gloriana, a series of tableaux involving an elderly, sometimes selfish, undignified Elizabeth I and her relationship with the Earl of Essex. Richard Hickox, however, put together a convincing case for the work with this performance, part of the Philharmonia's Britten Series.

The score isn't easy to pace - each of the earlier scenes closes with an orchestral climax, while the later ones mostly fade out. Hickox kept something in reserve in his orchestra, so that the effect when they did let rip was thrilling. The six extra trumpets presented their opening fanfares with a rousing swagger; elsewhere the brass blended mellifluously, and the strings negotiated plucked passages at breakneck speed with remarkable clarity. On this occasion the Philharmonia really was an orchestra of virtuosos working together as a team.

Hickox assembled a top-notch cast for this concert performance, with singers including Janice Watson, Catherine Wyn Rogers and Roderick Williams in supporting roles. Tenor Thomas Randle really performed as Essex, projecting the essence of the insolent yet vulnerable courtier every moment he was on the stage. This sense of involvement was lacking in Christine Brewer's performance of the title role. Her singing itself was imperious, but she remained visually detached. However, although much of the burden of the score falls to Elizabeth and Essex, this Gloriana was a team effort, and even the most fleeting solos, from Gail Pearson and James Gilchrist, were sung very strongly.

***** Unmissable **** Recommended *** Enjoyable ** Mediocre * Terrible