Ashkenazy as a conductor is a new phenomenon for me and on Friday night at the Sheldonian he led the Oxford Philomusica through a delightful combination of Weber, Mozart and Brahms much as he played the piano: with passion, all-consuming knowledge of the subtleties of the score and unfailing commitment to conveying his musical passion to a captivated and appreciative audience. His baton style was less than conventional but the slight nuances of his body language – a twitch of a finger here and a raised eyebrow there – directed the players clearly and precisely throughout the concert. These small gestures invoked great music. Furthermore his delight in the music was passionately reciprocated by the orchestra and warmly received by the audience.

The concert opened with Weber’s Der Freischutz overture and Ashkenazy and the Philomusica orchestra quickly established the dramatic tension in the music precisely alternating between C minor, representing evil, and C major, representing good. The ponderous string opening built through rising horns to the main allegro, which featured a melodious clarinet solo. The mellifluous string theme built throughout the piece ultimately reconciling the musical counterpoints of the overture in a positive final fanfare.

However, for me the highlight of the evening was the rendition of Mozart’s Violin Concerto No 3 featuring soloist, Alina Ibragimova. Ashkenazy led a reduced orchestra joyfully through the delightful delicacies and complexities of the piece, and from this delectable basis arose the precise notes of Alina Ibragimova’s elegant and eloquent violin. The wind section proved vital in providing support and counter-point to the violins throughout the piece. The oboes shared the opening theme with the violins, and were greatly augmented later by the horn section, notably led by Richard Dilley, interweaving musical motifs and themes. Later, in the 'Adagio', the flutes most effectively answered the violin’s theme. The pure and joyous music defied the complexity of the themes and parts and flirted with the audience’s emotions.

The concert concluded with a romantic rendition of Brahms’s Symphony No 1 compelled by an excellent performance on timpani by Tristan Fry. Throughout the piece two ascending and descending themes ran around, against and between each other – the strings frequently climbing in semitones whilst the wind section descended in thirds and during the slow introduction, the bassoon underpinned this lowering scale. The faster 'Allegro' also followed these counterpoints as the orchestra was led by Ashkenazy through this restless section. The slow movement then led to a precise and intimate melody between the violin and horn. The third movement was lyrically led by the clarinet, flute and oboe which provoked a lively response from the string section. The finale opened with a return to some of the tension prevalent at the opening of the piece and saw the whole orchestra reconcile the individual themes of the earlier sections in a new, joyous string theme, which was underpinned by the trumpet, and whole heartedly supported by the whole orchestra, reached a cathartic crescendo.

It was a delightful summer’s evening concert at the Sheldonian, where dust motes danced like fairies, fingers flew and trumpets blew and melodious music echoed round the theatre.