BR Klassik, Thorsten Preuss, 21.06.25
„Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream has rarely been heard with such liveliness, clarity, and humor. Pablo Heras-Casado on the conductor’s podium does not simply choose brisk, but cheerful tempi. The Wedding March sounds crisp, the Notturno magical, the Elves’ Lullaby (with the RIAS Chamber Choir) touching. And when the clumsy craftsmen mess up the play of Pyramus and Thisbe, the timpani rumble merrily. The music laughs, breathes, enchants. The result is an hour of pure happiness. And the perfect album for the warm summer nights ahead.“
Neue Züricher Zeitung, 21.06.25
„For this captivating live recording, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra teamed up with the phenomenal Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado and the actor Max Urlacher, who plays all of Shakespeare’s characters in person, which is almost always hilarious. The result is a kind of musical radio play with lots of Mendelssohn as you’ve never heard him before. The perfect evening program for the longest days of the year at home – or in the midst of buzzing flocks of mosquitoes on the balcony.“
Pizzicato, 23.06.25
„Pablo Heras-Casado’s conducting is grippingly intense, but also wonderfully colorful and shimmering, at the same time very pictorial in sound.“
„All the pieces of stage music are therefore played with great vitality and inspiration, without distorting the atmosphere or betraying the composer. Even the famous wedding march is played more fluently than usual, but it still remains Mendelssohn, with lots of fresh colors, delicate tones and plenty of atmosphere.“
Online Merker, Dr. Ingobert Waltenberger
„The musical side with the historically informed Freiburger Barockorchester, the unrivaled female choir of the RIAS Kammerchor Berlin under the musical direction of Pablo Heras-Casado is a dream that will delight children and adults alike. Fluid tempi, an irrepressible joy of playing and chamber music-like transparency are just three of the characteristics that make this audiophile recording a truly magical experience. Never before have we heard so many details of the magnificent instrumentation (besides strings, elven horns, festive trumpets, trombones, solo flutes in the scherzo, oboes, bassoon, clarinets, ophicleides, timpani), garnished with a maximum of charm, sound painting and articulatory verve.“
„An album that brings unlimited joy and the best of a cheerful mood. But warn any neighbors below you: During the wedding march or the lively finale, the temptation to jump around the apartment is huge.“