AS THE dismal summer fades away into the cold mists of autumn, how thoughtful of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic to put on a programme celebrating the sunnier climes of Italy.

And what a varied programme, too. The dark mystery of Verdi’s Sicilian Vespers, the fascination of Respighi’s The Fountains of Rome where there are hints of polytonality – being in several keys at once – and the sheer joy of Elgar’s Overture: In The South. Add to that the ever-tuneful Messa de Gloria of Puccini and it was a concert bursting with sunshine.

So was it? In the first half, yes. The Verdi was brooding, moody and mysterious. Quite whether conductor Vassily Petrenko had meant the piece to be fortissimo virtually all the time with little dynamic contrast is not known but a little more variation might have made it a more satisfying performance.

Respighi’s symphonic poem contains some quite brilliant orchestration, exploited to the full by Petrenko and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Of particular note were the horns and the solo cor anglais. The bullish performance of Elgar’s In the South overture concluded an extremely adventurous first half.

The Puccini Mass was altogether less satisfying. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir was as disciplined as ever but, unusually for them, their diction let them down with some lazy elisions of words, and others which were not clear at all.

Overall, this was not the best choral concert we’ve heard on Hope Street in recent years. Hopefully, things will improve dramatically when it comes to some of those major choral pieces planned in 2008.