Thibaut Garcia at the National Concert Hall

Last night I travelled into Dublin for another concert by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, this time under the direction of guest conductor Julio García Vico in a programme of music heavy with French and Spanish influences. The undoubted star of the show was classical guitarist Thibaut Garcia, who is French but has Spanish ancestry, who played the Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquin Rodrigo. I’ve loved this piece for ages, and have several recordings of it, but although it’s been a familiar part of the concert repertoire ever since it was composed in 1939, I’ve never heard it played live. Last night’s performance was stunningly beautiful, one of those occasions on which it was a privilege just to be there. I loved the way he played the first movement Allegro con Spirito with poise and precision but without a hint of punctiliousness. The famous second movement Adagio gives the soloist much more latitude for interpretation, and Garcia’s version was very different from others I’ve…