LPO/Tan Dun review – a full battery of drums, dramatic inhalations and hints of Mongolian throat singing

Royal Festival Hall, London
The Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Beijing Olympics composer premieres his immediately appealing choral concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra

Whether or not you recognise the name of Chinese-born American composer Tan Dun, you have almost certainly heard his music. His score for Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon swept up awards in 2000. He composed the official music for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. His back catalogue includes concertos for classical megastars Yo-Yo Ma and Lang Lang, a full-length work for the Metropolitan Opera and even an Internet Symphony for Google/YouTube.

No surprise, given his track record, that Tan’s Choral Concerto: Nine is immediately appealing. Commissioned to mark Beethoven’s 250th anniversary, the work demands the same orchestra-and-chorus forces as the Viennese composer’s final symphony – plus lashings of extra percussion. Conducted by Tan himself, its UK premiere saw the London Philharmonic Orchestra crammed on to an extended stage to accommodate a full battery of drums, with the combined London Philharmonic Choir and London Chinese Philharmonic Choir arrayed behind.