Rafael Payare and his Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal gave the Edinburgh International Festival premiere of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's The Song of Hiawatha, a once wildly popular Victorian cantata trilogy that had fallen out of the regular repertoire. Festival director Nicola Benedetti's decision to programme the work was a risk given its dated Henry Wadsworth Longfellow libretto and uncomfortable colonial narrative, but the Guardian's review found the gamble paid off musically, thanks to committed conducting, a crisp chorus and strong soloists.

Payare, who had not previously known the piece, conducted with verve and drew out the cantatas' thematic and dancelike qualities, though soloists and chorus were occasionally denied space for flexibility and quieter singing. The Edinburgh Festival Chorus, prepared by James Grossmith, sang with clear diction despite some imbalance between voice parts. Soloists Francesca Chiejina, Christopher Maltman and Nicky Spence brought strong performances, particularly in the final cantata, Hiawatha's Departure, with the review concluding that the musical riches largely justified Benedetti's bold programming choice, even if the work's "eccentric dramaturgy and questionable politics" mean it is unlikely to return to regular concert programming.