MAHLER – COLOGNE PHILHARMONIE, GERMANY

5 July 2019
WDR Sinfonieorchester, Alban Gerhardt, Igor Levit, Pekka Kuusisto

“No matter what comes next, the Cologne audience will miss the man. … It has been impressive to witness how much the string group’s density of sound and intensity of phrasing has improved during his time. … Finally, Mahler’s Fifth. This was clearly a home game, where the orchestra returned the input invested with all possible vigour and brilliance. … A conductor with less style and taste might be tempted to show off, but the Maestro remained down to earth.”

8 July 2019
Markus Schwering, Kölner Stadtanzeiger

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CHORÉGIES D’ORANGE 150th ANNIVERSARY: MAHLER SYMPHONY NO. 8

Jukka-Pekka leads musicians from the Orchestre National de France and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France in a performance of Mahler’s eighth symphony to be held at the Théâtre Antique, Orange, as the Chorégies d’Orange marks its 150th anniversary.
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JANACEK – MAISON DE LA RADIO, PARIS, FRANCE

20 June 2019
Orchestre National de France, Radio France Choir

“Jukka-Pekka Saraste takes an Intellectual, conscientious approach to every work … in addition to mastering not only Brahms and Beethoven, he also excels in Mahler, Bruckner and Sibelius.”
…
“Janacek’s Glagolitic Mass…was excellently chanelled by Saraste”

24 June 2019
Vincent Guillemin, ResMusica.com

SIBELIUS – DE DOELEN, ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

17 May 2019
Rotterdam Philarmonic Orchestra, Pekka Kuusisto

“Saraste achieves a spectacular balance in the orchestra, using the sound of the hall to bring about a light, almost playful quality, never weighing the music down”

17 May 2019
Yannik Eisenaecher, artstalkmagazine.nl

PROKOFIEV/SIBELIUS – MUNICH NATIONAL THEATRE, GERMANY

28 & 29 April 2019
Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Truls Mørk

“A Matter of Superlatives…
Jukka-Pekka Saraste was an ideal partner who proved on the conductor’s rostrum that someone other than General Music Director Kirill Petrenko is able to elicit the finest dynamic nuances from the State Orchestra. … After the interval, Saraste’s stirring interpretation of Sibelius’s Symphony No 2 was equally convincing.”

2 May 2019
Tobias Hell, Münchner Merkur

Beethoven: Complete Symphonies

Profil – PH18066

“Saraste’s detailed and unforced conducting and the first rate playing of the WDR Symphony Orchestra make this a most successful recording of the complete Beethoven symphonies, all the more so because of the superlative sound quality.”

Remy Franck, Pizzicato, March 2019

“Saraste accumulates this energy, collects it and then lets it descend upon us like some elemental force. These are moments for musical eternity…”

Frank Pommer, capriccio.se, March 2019

“Top class Beethoven” (5 stars)

Björn Sundkvist, capriccio.se, April 2019

SHOSTAKOVICH/GERSHWIN – MUSIIKKITALO, HELSINKI, FINLAND

15 March 2019
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Joonas Ahonen

“…an unbeatable performance of Shostakovich’s fourth symphony. One powerful climax after another led to the final blow, followed by fading heartbeats”

“In Saraste´s interpretation everything was in place…the best performance I have ever heard in concert, and I have heard many”

16 March 2019
Jukka Isopuro, Helsingin Sanomat

OUT NOW: RECORDING OF COMPLETE BEETHOVEN SYMPHONY CYCLE WITH WDR SINFONIEORCHESTER

The symphonies, recorded live in Cologne and released as box set, will be released soon on the PROFIL HAENSSLER label.
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MENDELSSOHN: ELIJAH – THEATER AN DER WIEN, VIENNA, AUSTRIA

16 February 2019
ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien, Arnold Schoenberg Chor, Christian Gerhaher(Elijah), Maria Bengtsson, Maximilian Schmitt, Ann-Beth Solvang, Kai Rüütel

“Leading the Radio Symphonieorchester Wien, Jukka-Pekka Saraste furiously breathed life into the dense score with great clarity and urgent intensity, yet holding the orchestra back sufficiently to let the singers shine.. A fine musical evening, its power originating from its starkness.”

18 February 2019
Judith Belfkih, Wiener Zeitung

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