CELEBRATE HANDEL!
Boston Globe (Jeremy Eichler)
“The Handel and Haydn chorus...sounded impressively clear and full."
"In the Coronation Anthems...Christophers managed to draw from the combined forces an impressively wide expressive range given the confines of each brief work."
"The chorus sang with both clarity of detail and an attractive depth of tone."
Classical Voice New England (Marvin Ward)
“Musicians, singers, and soloist responded to [Christophers'] style with an energetic and finely rendered performance. Diction was excellent and dynamics well nuanced. This was an auspicious beginning for his tenure."
"Christophers...directed in a very committed, engaged fashion, with an occasional flourish."
The Edge (Ed Tapper)
"The works were sung and played to perfection...with the Handel and Haydn chorus producing a honeyed tone, and, under their new leader, achieving a total transparency of texture."
"The melodic lines were seamless, the rhythms, crisply incised; and the orchestra and chorus never sounded more splendid."
"With Artistic Director Harry Christophers joining Advisor Sir Roger Norrington, Principal Conductor Grant Llewellyn, and Conductor Laureate Christopher Hogwood, Boston's Handel and Haydn Society qualifies as our best-guarded artistic treasure."
The Hub Review (Thomas Garvey)
"Christophers is smart, but straightforward, and conducts with physical verve and emotional openness--he's at home both with Handel's rhetoric and his sublimated rapture."
"The conductor drew a light, dignified energy from the Handel and Haydn orchestra that sometimes built cleanly from quiet reflection to genuine joy ("My Heart is Inditing") and at other times spun on a dime from swimming lyricism to triumphant blast (the famous opening line of "Zadok the Priest").
"In collaboration with John Finney, Christophers draws performances from the Handel and Haydn chorus that are consistent marvels of clarity, poise, and emotional commitment."
"And the delight continued with the finale, "Zadok the Priest," which shook the rafters with its full-throated triumph. As the last notes died away, it came as a slight shock to realize that...Christophers won't return till next year...That year may feel like a long wait."
BEETHOVEN AND MOZART
Boston Globe (David Weininger)
“Yet, Egarr made a convincing case that the [Mozart’s Symphony No. 1] is worth hearing irrespective of context, drawing out the music’s union of innocence and confidence.”
“Egarr led the A-major concert, K. 488, from the fortepiano in a lucid and elegant performance that featured a tight rapport with the orchestra.”
“There was no gainsaying in the results [Egarr] achieved, especially the near-perfect balance between richness and clarity in the orchestral texture and the prominence of the cellos and basses.”
“Egarr’s work was well appreciated, not only by the audience but by the orchestra. Someone should ensure that he returns again soon.”
Classical Voice New England (Marvin Ward)
“Performances were crisp, precise, with excellent dynamic control and tempo variation.”
“Egarr marked the beat with his head, cued entrances with looks in the direction of the players involved, and directed with gestures between playing his notes. It was all very organic to the music and the players responded well, creating a warm, rich blend.”
“These were impressive, convincing, and satisfying readings that carried the audience right along, and it gave Egarr and the Handel and Haydn ‘band’ a richly deserved standing ovation at the conclusion.”
“This is clearly a collaboration whose repeat will be warmly welcomed by all: Egarr, musicians, and audiences.”
The Hub Review (Thomas Garvey)
“For here was a musician who not only conducted (and played) a freshly conceived and deeply moving Mozart concerto on fortepiano, but then turned right around and made Beethoven’s Eighth Symphony sound alarmingly new—and I mean alarmingly new.”
“During his solo [in the second movement of the piano concerto], Egarr seemed to be drawing tragedy directly from a clear, deep well, and I found myself nearly fighting tears.”
“Free of the fortepiano, Egarr brought more clarity to the orchestra's playing, and the performance [of the Overture to Creatures of Prometheus] proved satisfying both in scope and detail.”
“Certainly the orchestra's virtuosic playing once again threw down the kind of intellectual guantlet one has come to expect from Handel and Haydn, and the early music movement in general.”
Read more critical acclaim :
2007-2008 Season
2006-2007 Season
2005-2006 Season
2004-2005 Season
2003-2004 Season
2002-2003 Season
2001-2002 Season
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