It was a strange match indeed to which the Malaysian audience was treated on November 10 at the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas – a 19 year-old Chinese pianist and an almost 200 year-old Russian orchestra. But for the large crowd that turned up to listen to this "East meets West" pairing, it was a match made in Heaven.

Fresh from a performance in Taipei the night before, this is the St. Petersburg Philharmonic’s second visit to KL and also their last stop before returning to St. Petersburg. The evening saw a return to the orchestra’s roots as it featured a selection of three pieces by Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninov who, according to Music Director and Chief Conductor, Maestro Yuri Temirkanov, once played with and conducted this very orchestra.

Maestro Temirkanov has been at the helm of this orchestra since 1988 when he took over from the late Evgeny Mravinsky. The Maestro has had a prolific career, having conducted most of the major orchestras across Europe and the United States of America as well as recorded scores of classical pieces with various orchestras.

As the first strains of the evocative Vocalise filled the air, it became apparent that Maestro Temirkanov and his orchestra were clearly in their element. The sound was rich and warm, coming spectacularly close to mirroring the human voices that the piece was originally intended for. The short piece ended all too soon, leaving the audience to bask in the glow of the beautiful imagery painted by the music.

Soloist Lang Lang took to the stage after that. Expectations were high for this young virtuoso, but he looked calm, drawing from his previous collaboration with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic last December on the same concerto.

Born in Shen Yang, China, Lang’s earliest exposure to music was through his father who played several Chinese musical instruments. He began studying the piano at the Music College when he was just 3 years old and was admitted to the China Central Music Conservatory at the age of 9. At 14, this musical prodigy was accepted into the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Lang has been winning awards at international competitions since the age of 5 when he won the first prize in the Shen Yang Piano Competition. Shortly after that, he gave his first public recital.

Lang’s interpretation of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2 in C Minor, was a powerful one. The dark undertones of those first eight chords were akin to the proverbial calm before the storm – preparing the audience for Lang’s passionate onslaught. His facial contortions were a moving sight on their own!

The pianist’s youthful energy was evident as he could hardly stay on the seat while playing, allowing wave after wave of raw emotion to carry the piece along. Maestro Temirkanov did an admirable job, forming a seamless bond between soloist and orchestra, making sure that neither threatened to overpower the other. Needless to say, the audience was very generous with their applause.

The evening was made complete when the orchestra returned after the intermission to perform Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 2 in E Minor. With four vastly different movements – one for each of the composer’s ever changing moods, perhaps? – this piece allowed the orchestra to showcase each of its sections in turn. Maestro Temirkanov worked his string section very hard here and they turned out a flawless performance. And lashings of praise go out to the brass and woodwind section as well for some stunning melodies.

For this sometime classical music aficionado, it was truly a night to remember. All thanks to a world-class performance by a world-class orchestra and a promising young pianist.