PRESS QUOTES
EUROPEAN TOUR / ORCHESTRE DE PARIS – NOVEMBER 2015:
“It’s Paavo Järvi’s last season as chief conductor of the Orchestre de Paris and on Saturday they performed together at the Vienna Konzerthaus. Taking this performance as a yardstick, these five years together must have been a very fruitful collaboration: one rarely experiences such an immediate connection between orchestra and conductor, such an extraordinarily attentive presence on both sides so that with economical means an understanding of the most subtle shades is possible.”
Wiener Zeitung
“This was a special evening at the (Berlin) Philharmonie … One thing is for sure: Järvi is not one of those conductors who exhaust themselves visibly … His body language is one of controlled movements which demonstrate reasoning and nobility.”
Berliner Morgenpost
“… the Orchestre de Paris sounds as if the musicians are just one person … and Järvi knows to use it. With the help of their uncommonly precise interrelationship he succeeds in building up a fascinating musical suspense.”
Süddeutsche Zeitung
“Järvi’s Nielsen 5 (with the Philharmonia Orchestra) was immensely commanding. There were elements of subjective thinking but it was to the benefit of the music. The very opening found the violas playing piano very softly before descending to almost nothing at the required diminuendo. This typified the conductor’s attention to dynamic contrast. There were subtleties of phrasing and true understanding of Nielsen’s colouring … rarely has Nielsen’s orchestration been so well defined.”
classicalsource.com
PÄRNU FESTIVAL 2015:
“Perfect Pärnu – There isn’t a hint of a hothouse environment on stage – these are simply musicians having the time of their lives, no small thanks to the inspiring Paavo Järvi himself, and they’re an inspiration, in turn, to the festival youth orchestra.”
BBC Music Magazine
“Top players, great Estonians – Utopian music-making led by the Järvi family in Estonia’s magical summer town … The result begged comparison with the elasticity of Abbado’s concerts with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, which is as good as it can get.”
theartsdesk.com
BERLIN PHILHARMONIC – MAY 2015:
“Paavo Järvi allows the musicians a mostly cheerful approach (in Shostakovich’s Symphony No.1) and tightens his interpretation again and again, to suddenly bring the orchestra into a higher voltage. Then, with rumbles and crashes into the rafters of the strings, one has the feeling that Järvi is firmly and quite clearly at the heart of the sound of the Ensemble…”
Berliner Zeitung, May 2015
MUNICH PHILHARMONIC – APRIL 2015:
“Even today such an important and original composer as the Dane, Carl Nielsen, receives too little attention on the German concert scene. Some of his symphonies are played, but the comic opera “Maskarade” premiered in 1906 is never encountered here … Paavo Järvi, not just the busy chief conductor in Bremen (Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie), Paris (Orchestre de Paris) and Tokyo (NHK Symphony Orchestra), but also a welcome guest with orchestras around the world, now offered this work with the Munich Philharmonic as a virtuoso piece for large orchestra … an inventive, elegant and multicolored programme in which Paavo Järvi is so well versed – always curious and inspired.”
Süddeutsche Zeitung
NIELSEN’S FOURTH SYMPHONY WITH PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRA:
An awesomely executed performance of Nielsen’s fourth symphony sat alongside perfectly pitched Haydn and sparkling Beethoven.
The Guardian
At the outset Järvi and the Philharmonia hurled us into the vortex with maximum force. It is possible to take a longer view building more patiently to the first movement’s glorioso climax, but this had conviction in spades and in Nielsen conviction counts for a great deal. It also had genuine finesse … This was a concert to make one realise why one keeps coming back for more.
classicalsource.com
Järvi and the Philharmonia captured the white heat of the opening movement presenting us with an uncontained maelstrom of sound. Järvi synthesised the composite elements into a seamless organic whole, bringing out the angularity of the writing and feelings of disquiet in the more reflective material. Nielsen’s sonic and harmonic shocks, rhythmic asymmetries and unusual textural collages were all brought thrillingly to life … This was great playing from Järvi and the Philharmonia – and it’s good to see these wonderful symphonies by Carl Nielsen receiving so much public exposure.
seenandheardinternational.com
DEUTSCHE KAMMERPHILHARMONIE / SEOUL – DECEMBER 2014
“The orchestra demonstrated their extraordinary ensemble power as Paavo Jarvi expertly pulled everyone together through the complex syncopation and entangled parts to create a clear transparent sound and an interpretation that was articulate and interesting.” Mitsunori Eto, Nikkei Newspaper, 18 December 2014
“Järvi, whose conducting was classy, polished and intense, appeared to be executing vibrato midair as he directed the strings, and his elasticity of tempo gave the Third Symphony a vitality (of Brahms) that it often lacks.”
Ji-youm Kwon, Korea Times, 8 December 2014