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Ingo Metzmacher, conductor

Reviews

...in concert…

"... an exhilarating and impressive occasion... Metzmacher brought a wonderful program of interrelated music [and] his performance of the Concerto and of the overture were light-footed and imaginative. There is quicksilver in him, as well as an acute ear for orchestral colors and balances, and a delight in rhythmic play. Like a swordsman, Metzmacher conducted with a pinpoint accuracy that also flashed with irresistible dash and swagger. He's a good man."
The Boston Globe, March 2001

"Musically, the production is staggering... Metzmacher splits the score open to reveal both its erotic beauty and its terrifying malignancy"
Weill's Mahagonny at the Hamburg Opera. The Guardian, November 2000

"Metzmacher took an extremely difficult program, clarified its elements, and made a convincing - even revelatory - interpretative statement"
Philadelphia Inquirer, April 2000

"Not only had Metzmacher gained lyrical empathy but he had the wind section almost eating out of his hand, so that he transformed The Makropoulos Case into the most beautiful opera Janacek has ever written"
Het Parool, February 2000

"… the London Philharmonic, visibly relishing every note, gave it their all. Few conductors get to the textural heart of a piece as well as the wonderful Ingo Metzmacher, and the throbbing horns, velvety strings and priapic trumpets all conspired to produce the sense of delirium for which Scriabin strove. … the performance can only be described as stupendous."
The Guardian, December 1999

"Ingo Metzmacher rose heroically to the challenge, unfolding wave upon wave of ecstasy, teasing us by constantly holding back the climax. Taking the long view of the work, he negotiated the points of articulation skilfully and controlled the ebb and flow of dynamics. The overall shape was mightily impressive."
The Times, December 1999

"An outstanding concert from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under Ingo Metzmacher. From the first, the slow introduction of the Beethoven was drawn in an unsettlingly beautiful, cleverly layered arc of tension, a string inner dynamism such as has rarely been heard. Metzmacher shaped everything with the utmost concentration and energy, yet at the same time revealed himself as an elegant musician with a perfect stick-technique… A sensational concert!"
Der Tagesspiegel, June 1999

"Metzmacher made the famous adagietto grow out of nothing, capturing the mood of sad resignation with a slow but fluid baton, and reached the hard-won ending in a blaze of affirmation."
The Times, April 1998


…on record…

"This [is a] superbly performed set of the symphonies - a real labour of love for Ingo Metzmacher.... Hartmann's style is utterly consistent, the formal plans tightly knit, the tone of voice quickly identifiable.... There's a serious intelligence at work in all these symphonies, and it emerges with forcefulness in Metzmacher's committed performances."
The Guardian, May 2000

"It sounds terrific – very accurate, strongly characterised and extremely well conducted by Hamburg’s young music director Ingo Metzmacher… Throughout, every change of mood, every ironic nuance, is charted atmospherically. A major issue."
Sunday Telegraph, October 1999 (Berg’s Wozzeck, EMI)

"There is a real sense of theatrical electricity about the whole performance. The clear focus of Ingo Metzmacher’s conducting, reinforced by the crispness of the orchestral playing, provides the secure foundation for a gallery of beautifully drawn portrayals of the main characters."
The Guardian, September 1999 (Berg’s Wozzeck, EMI)

"In this magnificent reading by the Berlin Philharmonic under Ingo Metzmacher’s direction, feeling and sound are one; above all it has real passion."
Sunday Times, March 1998 (Henze’s 9th Symphony, EMI)