Carmen and Porgy and Bess are both dramatic scores full of rich pickings for any arranger for orchestra with a starring role for the violin. Franz Waxman tells Carmen’s story from her provocative seduction of Don José to the prophecy of her own demise in the Card Trio, where her haunting melody, so suited to the violin, is expressively captured by Rachel Kolly d’Alba in her colourful and brilliantly played account. In his Fantasy on Porgy and Bess, Alexander Courage spreads his wings much further in an engaging and resourceful composition, as one might expect from one of Hollywood’s top music men. D’Alba, centre stage, brings all the characters to life, linking the numbers and embellishing their tunes, from Clara’s ‘Summertime’ and Serena’s heart-rending ‘My man’s gone now’ to her skittish interpretation of that dandy Sportin’ Life.

These two party pieces frame a work of more serious intent. Bernstein’s Serenade after Plato’s Symposium portrays Greek philosophers in movements all in praise of love. More approachable than the title might suggest, the scoring in the more light-hearted moments has a touch of Broadway ‘bling’ and in the thematic material there’s a self-evident affection for a more ancient world, albeit more 18th-century than old Greece. Could we mistake Plato’s friends for pupils of Dr Pangloss? The Serenade demands a high degree of virtuosity from violin and orchestra as well as an appreciation of the thought behind it. If d’Alba’s interpretation has more of a general view than the insightful performance by Mutter and Previn, there’s no denying her commitment to it or her accomplishment as a player. The unaccompanied opening is sensitively played, likewise the accompaniment from the Orchestra of the Loire under John Axelrod. This is indeed a happy partnership for this ‘American Serenade’.