McGegan’s rave Messiah performances in Houston
“Led by McGegan—who sometimes indicated what he wanted with little more than a flick of the wrist—the orchestra brought airiness to the fast sections, lilt to the lyrical ones and sharpness to the bursts of agitation.” Read more on Texas Classical Review. “Leading the orchestra this year was Nicholas McGegan, an 18th-century specialist with more […]
Halls, Bragle, Cooley, Berger “deliver an energetic, nuanced ‘Messiah.’”
“Fortunately, the Seattle Symphony has just such a maestro in the visiting conductor for this year’s “Messiah”: the British-born Matthew Halls, who was artistic director of the Oregon Bach Festival for five years and is now an international opera and symphony conductor. Halls not only has a thorough mastery of the “Messiah”: he has it […]
Vinikour’s “extra exultant” Messiah
“Vinikour made one wise decision after another, be it emphasizing crisp, clean attacks – the better to circumvent echo issues – or imploring the choir to make their celebratory tones extra exultant. “Soprano Yulia Van Doren has a beautiful voice that did marvelous things with Handel’s music “ –Read more at Twincities
Adams “voice was rich and velvety” in Messiah
Adams’s voice “was rich and velvety, beautifully matched to the similar sonorities in the strings.” Read more at Scoop Independent News
Jurenas’ luminous and full-bodied countertenor as the Guardian Angel in Orlando
“…the Guardian Angel: Eric Jurenas, whose smooth and full-bodied countertenor was a highlight.” Read more at The New York Times “Eric Jurenas brings a luminous countertenor to the part of the Guardian Angel” Read more at The Financial Times
“Ricci’s direction, operating on a bare stage against a backdrop of fetching visual projections, captured this quicksilvery dramatic vein perfectly. So did music director Jory Vinikour, leading a small complement of string instruments from the harpsichord and giving the whole performance a welcome sense of spontaneity and security.” Read more at SF CHRONICLE “Conductor Jory […]
“Agnew’s jollity was captivating…an extraordinary night”
★★★★★ “Les Arts Florissants, William Christie and Paul Agnew put on an extraordinary night “Agnew’s jollity was captivating, mixing conducting with singing tenor… Read more at The Times
Agnew’s bravura performance at Barbican
“…bravura performance of his co-conductor, and assistant director, Paul Agnew. In several of the pieces he led at the Barbican, Agnew would turn round on the podium and let rip with the tenor part as if he (like his fellow-soloists) had merely been idling at the edge of the stage until his moments of glory […]
McGegan “expressive as ever”
“McGegan has always prized flexibility and dramatic immediacy, as Saturday’s performance in Berkeley’s First Congregational Church showed… “He gave the singers their time and they rewarded him and the audience with superbly characterized performances, even though Judas doesn’t dwell on plot details or character interactions. Several times, he leaned over the podium to listen carefully […]
“Taylor’s versatile voice: sweetness and light or fearless and daring”
“What made this performance truly exceptional to me was the replacement of the usual contralto parts with a countertenor. There was a warm glow to Daniel Taylor’s “But who may abide” and “Good tidings from Zion” that simply doesn’t exist in the much cooler contralto timbre. And what a versatile voice — he could be […]
