A whole evening of Mozart filled St George’s Church for this Brighton Festival performance by The English Concert and soloists.

Star of the event was undoubtedly the acclaimed soprano Lucy Crowe presenting various arias from operas and culminating in the Exsultate, Jubilate.

The concert opened with a divertimento for strings written in Salzburg by the composer while still in his teens. The instruments were beautifully balanced and, from the start, the violins were singing with brilliance.

Lucy Crowe’s wonderful voice then took over for an extract from Mozart’s first “serious” opera, Mitridate, re di Ponto, written when he was a mere 14 years old.

The soloist – making her debut at New York’s Carnegie Hall this season – delivered an often achingly beautiful performance and engaged the audience with drama and expression, in particular in the aria from Lucio Silla that preceded the interval.

As a contrast we were treated to Mozart’s Bassoon Concerto in B flat major. Soloist Ursula Leveaux had fun playing this slightly quirky and demanding piece: the slow second movement conjured up the feeling of a lazy Sunday afternoon – until we were blown away again by more of Mozart’s playfulness and the concluding Alleluia from the Exsultate, a finale well worthy of the standing ovation it received.