London Symphony Orchestra
“The programme might have looked conventional on paper but there was nothing safe about Klaus Mäkelä’s debut with the London Symphony Orchestra … From an impressionistic, hyper sensual opening (to The Rite of Spring), no detail was too small to escape his attention. The Games of the Rival Tribes erupted with a chilling ferocity while a surprisingly funky Procession of the Sage wound up in Latin America. The visceral final thwack of the Sacrificial Dance concluded a spectacular performance from an orchestra on exceptional form and a conductor who exudes star quality.”
* * * * The Guardian, Clive Paget, 11 November 2024
“Superlative! Outstanding! Transcendent! One could empty a whole thesaurus of laudatory adjectives for Mäkelä and the LSO’s account of The Rite of Spring … Here was a performance that deserves to be archived as a benchmark, and which rightly received rapturous applause.”
* * * * * Music OMH, Barry Creasy, 10 November 2024
“Out of innumerable Rite of Springs in half a century of concert-going, I’ll stick my neck out and say this was the most ferocious in execution, the richest in sound. Others may have wanted a faster, lighter Rite. But the two things that make every concert conducted by Klaus Mäkelä so extraordinary are that he inhabits the music to a visibly high level, and that he gets the fullest tone and urgent phrasing from every instrument.”
The Arts Desk, David Nice, 11 November 2024
“No holds were barred … and with every instrument played to their utmost the result was stunning. Mäkelä employed jagged, wild gestures … and brought out sounds in the piece I had never heard before.”
Seen and Heard International, John Rhodes, 11 November 2024
“Quieter moments impressed too: the plaintive opening bassoon call; or the eerie entwining of cor anglais and alto flute in the Ritual of the Ancestors. Mäkelä has a terrific ear for balance and teased out the beauty in Stravinsky’s barbaric score. But he didn’t stint on the drama and the closing Sacrificial Dance was properly shattering.”
Bachtrack.com, Mark Pullinger, 11 November 2024
“Is Klaus Mäkelä really the Next Big Thing? Still only 28, the young Finnish conductor has already scooped four of the most impressive music directorships in the world. Some, however, think he’s done much too much, much too young, and is making musical currant buns for tea (per The Specials). His debut with the London Symphony Orchestra was a chance to see for ourselves … Mäkelä may become a great conductor someday, but for now I’m calling it for the currant buns. If he slows down and goes deeper, I’ll look forward to hearing him again in 20 years’ time.”
* * * i news, Jessica Duchen, 11 November 2024
“One of the less lovely traits of the English is a resentment of overly conspicuous success. Every now and then, this resentment pops up in the classical music world, especially around conductors … One certainly gets that feeling from classical twitterati and — dare I say — one or two critics, in connection with Klaus Mäkelä … But the results were wonderful, which in the end is all that counts.”
* * * * * The Telegraph, Ivan Hewett, 11 November 2024
PROGRAMME:
Jean Sibelius: Tapiola
Sergei Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No 2
Igor Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring
Soloist: Andrej Power
