LAST weekend’s Orchestra of Opera North In the City mini- festival included a sold out screening of Brassed Off - with live orchestral sound track; a sold out Symphonic Sounds of Back to Basics concert, and this Classic Summer Evening programme conducted by Renato Balsadonna.

The great British climate could be said to have resumed normal service as advice following the abrupt end of the heatwave was to wrap up and bring waterproofs.

A shower during the first half failed to dampen the spirits of an enthusiastic audience, or good humoured queues at the on-site street food and drink wagons.

The programme of orchestral lollipops, plus a handful of popular tenor arias, opened with Aaron Copland’s resounding Fanfare for the Common Man.

More substantial excerpts included Smetana’s description of the river Vitava from his set of tone poems Ma Vlast (My Country), Ponchielli’s famous Dance of the Hours, the Largo from Dvorak’s New World Symphony, and a truncated arrangement of Ravel’s Bolero.

Rafael Rojas, the distinguished Mexican tenor and Opera North regular guest artist, infused with Mediterranean passion Vesti la giubba (On with the Motley) from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, La donna e mobile from Verdi’s La Traviata, and E Lucevan le Stella (The stars are shining brightly) from Puccini’s Tosca.

Johann Strauss’ The Blue Danube might have been the official end to the programme, but there was more still to come.

Rafael Rojas returned to the stage and thrilled us with his high notes in Puccini’s Nessun Dorma.

The audience rose to its feet in a prolonged standing ovation for Rojas, the orchestra of Opera North, maestro Renato Balsadonna and the evening’s genial compere - BBC Radio 3 announcer Mark Forrest.