We have heard Simone Roggen play with the St Matthew’s Chamber Orchestra on several occasions in the past, so we knew that we were in for a brilliant performance. She impressed from the start walking on stage dressed in a beautiful long full skirt of a golden brown hue with sparkling glitter and offset by a plain black top. Playing the well -known Bruch No 1 concerto she commanded the audience’s attention from the first note. Listeners always look for certain dynamics and contrasting levels of sound from the soloist and orchestra in this work and we were treated to a superb performance by both soloist and conductor. Simone performed on a 300yr old Italian made violin and the sonorous depth of tone that she was able to coax from the instrument especially in the lower register was impressive. Her double stopping too was impeccable, and the rapport that she had with the conductor made for an incredibly memorable performance which the audience marked with sustained applause.