Noah Vinzens, Schwäbische Zeitung, 21st January 2022
“Playful, cheeky, light-hearted: The oboe opens Maurice Ravel’s Orchestra Suite with a soft solo performance. The clarinet provides an answer while the string section is just quietly plucking away at their instruments in the background. “Le tombeau de Couperin” (Couperin’s Tomb), which Ravel had originally conceived as […]
Karl Georg Berg, Die Reinpfalz, 29th November 2021
“With the dazzlingly organised State Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael Francis offered a [Brahm’s Symphony No. 3] rendition carried by great passion and intensity. The conductor succeeded in a fascinating way in making a much-played and well-known work sound as if it were new. The melancholy third movement […]
Gabor Halasz, Die Reinpfalz, 18th November 2021
“Michael Francis, as well as the rest of the program, did justice to Shchedrin’s brilliant compositional style, his imagination in the best possible way. His performance was meticulous, feeling spontaneous. He was always reacting quickly with exceptionally elegant conducting. It was experiencing a maestro in the best […]
Frederik Hanssen, Der Tagesspiegel, 23rd October 2021
“There is a pleasant atmosphere of mindfulness and respect in the Konzerthaus on Friday. The naturalness with which Michael Francis shares the applause with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin after each piece, with which he appreciates the achievements of the soloists and the vocal groups, and the way in […]
Gabor Halasz, Die Rheinland, 12th September 2021
Under Francis’ perfectly clear, precise and elegant baton, the State Philharmonic’s performance was extremely concentrated, compact and passionate throughout. In this regard, the eloquence of the conductor’s communication must also be emphasized, which vividly indicated the phrasing, articulation, expression and dynamic. The music lived, breathed and spoke […]
Jan-Geert Wolff, Allgemeine Beitung, 7th September 2021
“…it was a special sound experience, which was foremost also thanks to the empathetic playing of the musicians. If in the original one is astonished by the pianissimo in the beginning, here it sounds almost crystalline fine. Above all, the interpretation distinguishes itself by enormous transparency with its […]
14th June 2021, Christian Hertzog, The San Diego Union-Tribune
“…these performances deeply moved me in a rare way for these old warhorses. Both works seemed new. Playing was uncluttered yet expressive. Tempos were faster than usual, but the ensemble work was precise and the intonation impressive, considering the humidity and falling temperature as the night […]
George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27th December 2020
“Mainly Mozart paved the way for drive-in classical music concerts, presenting 19 of them (and one jazz performance by sax great Charles McPherson) at the Del Mar Fairgrounds between July and October. The culminating October concerts featured the 34-piece Mainly Mozart Festival Orchestra…
Five favorite 2020 classical concerts
1. […]
Jim Farber, San Francisco Classical Voice, 20th October 2020
“It was an emotional moment reminiscent of the final scene in Field of Dreams, when Saturday night a seemingly endless line of cars snaked its way toward the vibrantly glowing stage in front of the Del Mar Racetrack Arena — all for a chance to enjoy […]
Markus Pacher, Die Rheinpfalz, 26th September 2020
“It remains a mystery how the State Philharmonic repeatedly manages to prove its reputation as an orchestral precision element despite these difficult times. “
