"It appears no less than a veritable contribution, and proofs how our national amateur choirs in the past quarter century have developed positively"
www.opusklassiek.nl, 19-9-2013
De Vriend manages to let the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra sound like a vibrant baroque club, while maintaining the depth and reliability of a modern orchestra.
NRC Handelsblad, 13-6-2013
Jan Willem de Vriend paces the various sections of the finale shrewdly. I particularly appreciate the energy he brings to the music ... there's no stuffiness or sentimentality.
Music Web International, 01-5-2013
For a fresh, immediate statement that compels one's attention from start to finish, I cannot imagine anyone being disappointed by this new release which is also beautifully recorded.
Grammophone, 01-5-2013
Jan Willem de Vriend tackles the symphony with hearty gusto, and the choral contributions of Consensus Vocalis are particulalrly fine.
Irish Times, 19-4-2013
He develops the tonal aura that donates the piece its required greatness.
Fono Forum, 01-4-2013
The stereo-version is impressing, the surround-version is overwhelming
hifi & records, 01-3-2013
Press
A new theme in the discography of The Netherlands Symphony Orchestra and conductor Jan Willem de Vriend: Mendelssohn's Symphonies!
Perhaps this is a form of awakening: the dawning of the rediscovery and re-appreciation of Mendelssohn. Jan Willem de Vriend and his orchestra make their contribution to this. Ferdinand David, the concertmaster of the Gewandhaus Orchester and a friend of Mendelssohn’s, was played a role in the first publications of sonatas by Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann and many other composers. He provided the fingerings and bowings for these editions. De Vriend got copies of the editions and closely studied them, learning much about how music was played at that time. Through this, he and his orchestra more fully assimilated Mendelssohn and have their own Mendelssohn. This CD will surely become your own Mendelssohn. Enjoy the music.
"Mendelssohn's Lobgesang is undoubtedly the greatest work that has proceeded from any German composer since Beethoven. It is great in plan, great in development, and masterly in detail." (From: Annual report - Sacred Harmonic Society London (1844)) That Lobgesang was nevertheless forgotten, despite its qualities and reviews such as the previous, is largely due to comparisons with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which immediately sprang up, and the large vocal portion of the work. The comparison – see below – was unfavourable for Mendelssohn. Let alone that every symphony, regardless of who wrote it, was compared with Beethoven’s masterpieces.(from the linernotes of this cd)