A few Reviews

July 2015

Recording

Chamber Orchestra of Europe

Deutsche Grammophon

Diana Damrau · Anna Prohaska Rolando Villazón · Paul Schweinester Franz-Josef Selig · Thomas Quasthoff Vocalensemble Rastatt Mozart: Die Entführung aus dem Serail 2 CD

Nominated to the 58e GRAMMY Awards Year 2015 for Best opera recording

(Rolando Vilazón, Diana Damrau, Paul Scweinester, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Yannick Nézet-Séguin)

August 31, 2015

“Nézet-Séguin shows a masterly sense of when to press forward and when to ease up. Another aspect of his conducting is the insistence on sharp, almost Beethovenian dynamic contrasts.”

P.E. Robinson, Musical Toronto

August 4, 2015

“Thanks to conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s energy, this disc is among the finest recordings of Mozart’s youthful comedy… However, what lifts the recording into the top league is undoubtedly the quality of Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s conducting.”

R. Christiansen, The Dayly Telegraph (London)

August 1st, 2015

“Once again, Nézet-Séguin shows how good he is in Mozart. His speeds are well judged, never too fast for the singers to articulate clearly. And he has the knack of bringing out detail without sounding fussy… Particularly beguiling is the oboist’s rubato… The orchestra is beautifully balanced, with a fortepiano tinkling discreetly in the background.”

R. Lawrence, Garamophone (London)

July 20, 2015

« La version de Yannick Nézet-Séguin est une réussite totale, et s’inscrit durablement dans la discographie moderne de l’ouvrage . . . [Nézet-Séguin] parvient à résoudre la quadrature du cercle à l’opéra, qui est d’enflammer l’action tout en tenant, et de quelle manière, la ligne musicale. »

D. Joucken, Forum Opéra

July 10, 2015

« Au pupitre d’un brillant Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Yannick Nézet-Séguin fait entendre une lecture à la fois vivace et nuancé, tour à tour, charmante, agressive et sensible. Quelle joie! »

A.Laska, Res Musica (Paris)

August 2015

Recording

Philadelphia Orchestra

Deutsche Grammophon

Rachmaninoff: Variations/Daniil Trifonov CD

September 25, 2015

“This new recording suggests that the Philadelphians’ unique connection with Rachmaninoff is alive and well under Nezét-Séguin’s dynamic baton. They are the perfect collaborators for Trifonov’s crystalline, sensitive piano playing.”

P. Rucker, Washington Post

September 21, 2015

« Daniil Trifonov, Yannick Nézet-Séguin et le Philadelphia Orchestra sont en état de grâce pour la célèbre "Rhapsodie sur un thème de Paganini". Leur interprétation se hisse aisément dans les sommets de la discographie… »

J.C. Le Toquin, Res Musica (Paris)

September 1st, 2015

« Avec un chef aussi attentif que Yannick Nézet-Séguin, la “Rhapsodie sur un thème de Paganini” devient l’une des plus chambristes et inventives que l’on connaisse. »

S. Friedrich, Classica (Paris)

September 1st, 2015

“Trifonov is fortunate to have the Philadelphia Orchestra under their dynamic conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin… This is a first-class recording in every way.”

R.E Benson, ClassicalReview.com

August 17, 2015

“Trifonov and Nézet-Séguin do seem genuinely to be a meeting of musical minds.”

J. Nichols, Garamophone Online

September 2015

Recording

Orchestre Métropolitain

ATMA Classique

MAHLER 10 CD

January 28, 2016

“It’s reassuring to know that at 40 Yannick Nézet-Séguin—unquestionably one of the world’s top five most exciting conductors—…”

“The warm, intimate, slender sound is an appropriate reflection of the score Mahler left incompletely fleshed out, the bare bones of which Cooke mostly respects.”

“Warm sound in Montreal’s Maison symphonique helps preserve a very special world.”

Read the complete article

D. Nice, BBC Music Magazine

September 21 to October 17, 2015

Opera

VERDI: Otello

Metropolitan Opera (New York)

Aleksandrs Antonenko, tenor (Otello)
Sonya Yoncheva, soprano (Desdemona)
Zeljko Lucic, baritone (Iago)
Bartlett Sher, staging

8 representations

September 22, 2015

“Even at his most exciting, Mr. Nézet-Séguin tends to avoid the obvious in his performances, as was true here. Rather than pushing the music to extremes, he drew crisp, subtly detailed and colorful playing from the formidable Met orchestra.”

“Nézet-Séguin sounded in lockstep with the orchestra all night long, frequently bringing out delicious details.”

S.C. Walls, The Guardian

“… And Nézet-Séguin led the opera with an almost Toscanini-like intensity…”

R. Levine, Bachtrack

October 30 and 31; November 1st, 2015

Concert

Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest

De Doelen Hall, Rotterdam

Truls Mork, cello
Tchaikovsky: Francesca da Rimini
Shostakovich: Concerto for cello No 2
Prokofiev: Symphony No 7

November 3, 2015

Russian extremes: Nézet-Séguin enthralls Rotterdam

“Nézet-Séguin opened with a sublime rendition of Tchaikovsky’s Francesca da Rimini. From the beginning of this symphonic poem, the Canadian conductor slowly built intensity in the strings, layering a lush texture elevating the piece’s romance to stunning heights. ‘Mighty Mouse’ (as Joyce Didonato has nicknamed him) fascinated with complete control over his highly expressive, but authentic physicality. The whirlwind of flames in which Francesca and her brother-in-law lover Paolo find themselves in Dante’s Inferno vividly came to life through the bewitching wind section, arousing the lovers’ feverish entangled passion.”

Read the complete article

D. Pinedo, Bachtrack

November 21 to 28, 2015

Opera

R. STRAUSS: Elektra

Opéra de Montréal

Lise Lindstrom, soprano (Elektra)
Nicola Beller Carbone, soprano (Chrysothémis)
Agnes Zwierko, mezzo-soprano (Clytemnestre)
Alan Held, baritone-bass (Oreste)
Alain Gauthier, staging

4 representations

Montreal, November 22, 2015

Music matters most in new production of Elektra

“The central element remained Strauss’s lavish score and Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s mastery of its kaleidoscopic rhythms, phrases and colours.”

Read the complete article

A. Kaptainis, The Montreal Gazette

November 23, 2015

An electric Elektra in Montreal, full of wondrous sound and fury

“Nézet-Séguin … conjured what was simultaneously an ideal accompaniment and a tour de force that left me wishing for a repeat performance sans singers.”

Read the complete article

P. Maunder, Bachtrack

October 26, 2015

Concert

Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest

Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Paris

S. Connolly, mezzo-soprano R.D. Smith, tenor Beethoven: Symphonie No 6 (Pastorale) Mahler: *Das Lied von der Erde *

October 28, 2015

Beethoven et Mahler magistralement servis par Yannick Nézet-Séguin

Beethoven et Mahler magistralement servis par Yannick Nézet-Séguin « La Symphonie Pastorale qui débutait ce programme fut une totale réussite. Dirigée à la main et de mémoire par un Yannick Nézet-Séguin très souriant, attentif et investi, comme il le sera toute la soirée durant, cette symphonie révèle, grâce à une lecture fouillée et précise, toute sa richesse. On a même parfois l’impression d’entendre les multiples détails de cette œuvre pour la première fois, un signe qui témoigne de l’importance du travail d’amont. »

« Car l’art suprême de Yannick Nézet-Séguin réside aussi dans sa capacité à rendre audible toute la musique, sans ni forcer aucun trait, ni perdre l’essentiel du propos et de la ligne : un vrai travail d’orfèvre. »

« On l’a donc compris, ce Chant de la terre était puissant, tendu et son énergie interne concentrique tournée vers la seule musique. »

« Un superbe orchestre dirigé par un immense chef qui décidément transforme tout ce qu’il touche en or. »

Read the complete article

G. Lesur, Bachtrack

The greatest generator of energy on the international podium.

The Financial Times