Schumann's Manfred Overture needs persuasive advocacy. On Friday it was a thrilling launch for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra's Wounded Hearts concert, under Rafael Payare.
Like the Byronic hero that the composer portrays, this music does wander somewhat.
On this occasion, however, the lithe young Venezuelan conductor kept it firmly on track, creating drama through impressively sonorous playing, with rushing violins flaring up in storm-tossed crescendos.
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein has lived with Prokofiev's Sinfonia Concertante for almost two decades, having learned it at the age of 14. A triumphant performance on Friday night must have seemed predictable.