THIS Finale was not just the end of the Sinfonia’s 2013-14 season but also Thomas Zehetmair’s last evening here as music director, though he will return as the orchestra’s conductor laureate.

Mozart’s Overture to Don Giovanni, with its mix of darkness and sparkle made for an ideal start showing both Sinfonia and Zehetmair in top form.

Bartok’s Viola Concerto, one of his last compositions, featured Ruth Killius as soloist who led from the start with a full, expressive sound.

The Sinfonia handled the wide dynamic range superbly from truly soft strings and woodwind to full on brass fanfare with Zehetmair guiding them through the complex, everchanging background.

For this special concert, Zehetmair, his wife Ruth Killius and Sage, Gateshead had co-commissioned John Casken’s That Subtle Knot, a double concerto for violin, viola and orchestra.

It began gently with Zehetmair’s violin at first, then Killius, with gentle splashes of colour from the orchestra’s individual instruments, then sections and finally full ensemble, often falling back to leave the two soloists.

Much of the concerto was calm, allowing the violin and viola to be heard clearly exploring and developing their musical and spiritual relationship. Each of the two movements included a more agitated section which made the following calm much more effective and there was the gentlest ending to a most accomplished performance.

After such a demanding programme it might have been thought that Zehetmair could relax with Beethoven’s familiar 5th Symphony but there was nothing casual about this performance.

So many details emerged from this wonderfully controlled and considered interpretation with the tempi just right and the overall shape and colouring spot on. Its nuanced performance made it sound truly fresh as if it had just been written.

The standing ovation was never more truly deserved.

Peter Bevan