The Orchestra of Oxford’s concert version of Das Rheingold at the Town Hall last Saturday was a very rare local performance of this preliminary stage of The Ring Cycle, 140 years since the opera’s first night in Munich. So it was a shame that more people didn’t grasp the opportunity to hear it, as it fielded a stellar cast, with internationally renowned singers alongside rising young professionals.

A concert performance doesn’t, of course, offer its singers quite the same scope for character interpretation as a staged production, but this cast managed to create a gripping and compelling drama that was mesmerising in its intensity. Jeremy White gave a solid and polished performance as Wotan, singing with immense power and authority, while Deborah Miles-Johnson was strong and expressive as his wife, Fricka. Justin Lavender explored the duplicitous nature of the wily Loge, colouring the music with rich tonal warmth.

But it was Malcolm Rivers as Alberich that really commanded the attention. This was a riveting, ferocious depiction of this power-crazed villain, who spurns love and sets his sights on the riches of the Rhine, thus encapsulating the opera’s central theme of love versus greed. But there was poignancy here, too, with Alberich’s defeat at the hands of Wotan and Loge inviting sympathy as he becomes a tragic victim of his own malevolence.

Among smaller roles, Giles Underwood and Alan Ewing were a formidable pair as the giants Fafner and Fasolt, while Daniel Norman’s gloriously honeyed tones were wasted in the tiny role of Mime. Elisabeth Meister, Sara Johnsson and Katherine Cooper were alluring as the three rhinemaidens, with Johnsson also doubling as the terrified Freia.

Conductor James Longstaffe ensured meticulous attention to detail and a well-sustained, driving energy, with the orchestra providing magnificent — if occasionally over-loud — support. This was a thrilling performance, with the audience held spellbound before erupting into a well-deserved standing ovation.