Semyon's recent time in Munich with the Sinfonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks was extended at the last minute to incorporate three further concerts when he stepped in for an indisposed Gatti to conduct Beethoven and Tchaikovsky. Events took another unplanned-for turn when he subsequently took over performances of Mahler 3 at the opening of the Vienna Festival with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. All this, together with a concert of Glanert, Shostakovich and Dvorak with the Filarmonica della Scala in Milan, has culminated in a multitude of flights, rehearsals, repertoire, concerts and cities within a very short space of time!
read the full reviewA standing ovation, cheering and shouts of bravo for Bychkov, who took over from an ailing Mariss Jansons in Mahler's D minor Symphony. Together with the Vienna Philharmonic he brought epic breadth and sumptuous sonorities to a fairytale whose images all strive towards a single idea: what the love of God tells us. Bychkov and the Viennese players fill Mahler with a magical beauty of sound. Every detail sparkles in sophisticated shades of colour, the six movements creating a powerful rainbow.
Kronenzeitung, May 2008
read the full reviewBychkov's approach was fascinating and original ... [he] created a tremendous sense of character very, very quickly. What impressed, besides grand, beautiful playing from every section (whether in massed or solo passages), was a sense of changeability ... Bychkov's powerful immediacy and heart-stopping intensity magnetically drew the listener in.
LA Times, March 2008