Tender Tones
Frankfurter Neue Presse, 16.02.2009
This time, the Kurtheater's audience was treated to an unusual concert. While most of the symphonic concerts for A cycle subscribers are focused on traditional repertoire, this evening was marked by a captivating, exotic flair: Astor Piazzolla, Joaquin Rodrigo and Isaac Albéniz were the composers on the bill, contributing melancholy strains and a southern spirit. This was topped off by an extremely colorful cast of soloists, as the Piazolla featured a solo piano, while Rodrigo composed the original version of his "Concierto Andaluz" for no less than four solo guitars.
Hence, the list of protagonists is accordingly long: the Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen was the orchestra providing the musical backdrop, and the organizers were able to recruit pianist Thomas Wellen as well as the Barrios Guitar Quartett for the latter solo part, far from any conventionally beaten musical tracks. The conductor was Lisa Xanthopoulou, who has been well-known to the Bad Homburg cultural scene since she won the 2002 Conductors' Prize. Conducting continues to be a male domain, and Xanthopoulou is one of the few women in this profession who is making a name for herself with great commitment and thanks to brilliant performances. Clad in a silver tux, she coaxed riveting and passionate playing out of her ensemble.
In "Tres Piezas" by Astor Piazzolla, the artists conveyed a great deal of fire and plenty of charm. Naturally, we were all curious to hear the original version of the "Concierto Andaluz" by Joaquin Rodrigo. It turned out to be one of sensitive strings, and one had to listen carefully to hear to tender tones of the guitars over the blanket of sound produced by the orchestra. Solo guitars are typically equipped with amplifiers in situations like this, but since this was the original version and Rodrigo certainly didn't envisage the use of electrical equipment, this was fair enough.
The concert closed with an enthralling performance of the "Iberia Suite" by Isaac Albeniz for the Kurtheater audience.
Michael Jacob
A Balmy Summer’s Night
Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday Issue, 15.02.2009
by GUIDO HOLZE
Lisa Xanthopoulou, winner of the 2002 Bad Homburg Conductors' Prize and Director of the Schloss Concerts during the 2002/2003 season, still enjoys great popularity with this city's audiences. This time, she conducted a concert given by the Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen at the Kurhaus Theater. Astor Piazzolla's "Tres Piezas", with its contemporary, jazzy edge in the style of sophisticated popular music, for solo piano and strings, was performed with classical elegance, with the piano part (Thomas Wellen) skillfully integrated into the overall framework of sound. The sound proportions were appropriate in the "Concierto Andaluz" for guitar quartett and orchestra by Joaquin Rodrigo. The folkloresque concerto unfolded with an almost gaudy southern charm, bringing back memories of balmy summer nights. The "Barrios Guitar Quartet", accurate, discrete and virtuoso as always, offered a little Danza by Manuel de Falla as an encore. Five movements from the twelve-part "Iberia Suite", originally written for the piano by Isaac Albéniz, were delivered to great effect in the skilful orchestration by Carlos Surinach. Its sometimes grotesque traits, almost heralding Shostakovich, were emphasized surprisingly well.
Greek discourse, instrumental melody. Lisa Xanthopoulou and the State Orchestra in a stand-out concert.
THESSALONIKI, March 2006
Lisa Xanthopoulou and the State Orchestra in a stand-out concert.
Review: ANTONIS I. KONSTANTINIDIS
With a reading from Thucydides' "History", the political commentator (and former editor) Kostas Zouraris, lifted the curtain and attempted to draw the music-loving audience directly, and in perhaps the most immediate way possible, into the conceptual world of the concert that followed. Quite a unique concert, which, by its very title, and aside from its thematic, attitudinal, and aesthetic diversification, drifted far from the familiar, usual, and to a great extent, anticipated concerts of an orchestra.
Word and Music
With the lifting of the initial veil of mystery, musical poetry found its source of inspiration, the notes revealing the timeless power of the Greek language, the music melding with the classical beauty of ancient texts, setting the scene for an experience unlike any other in Greece. It was an unforgettable and poetic musical evening. An evening with the Thessaloniki State Orchestra, where the philosophic texts, the tragedies, and myths, stories timeless and mundane, in dramatic readings by Yiannis Fertis and the compelling Eva Kotamanidou, in the accessible Modern Greek language, inserted between the aptly chosen pieces from spiritually connected musical works, brought to mind something once intentional, but in our times, suppressed. The heritage of ancient Greek civilization was not just a matter of profound interest for European intellectuals and artists of the Renaissance and Enlightenment, but also a spiritual starting point, a cultural spark, an unparalleled and virtual aesthetic standard.
The musical compositions, whose initial thematic inspiration was drawn from that very past, and which were interpreted with characteristic aplomb in the concert that we attended, were undeniable proof of the above premise.
The Concert
The choice of works, covering a wide historical range, contributed to the interpretational difficulty of the attempt. From the classicism of Gluck, the romanticism of Mendelssohn, to the contemporary path of Bernstein, the aesthetic diversification and stylistic search of the ages, as they were sketched by the personal touch of the composer, are brought to today's interpretation demanding a delicate, discrete, yet distinctive handling which will include, expand, but not overlook the bounds of the necessary interpretational balance. That balance, shaping stylistic rigor with aesthetic freedom, was perhaps the most striking technical element of the concert that we attended. The State Orchestra revealed its interpretational and adaptive abilities with utmost ease under the baton of Lisa Xanthopoulou.
The Performers
We paid careful attention to the maestro from Thessaloniki at the podium, and can only convey with great enthusiasm and without any equivocation our most positive impressions. Especially accurate in her conducting, detailed in her reading, and with a proverbial and exemplary plasticity in her movement, Ms Xanthopoulou was absolute in her interpretational aspirations - and she succeeded marvelously. We were also left with positive impressions of the participation of violinist Giorgos Kandilides. His performance of Bernsteinäs demanding "convivial" serenade was excellent. As to the singers, baritone Dimitris Platanias was especially solid and confident, Antonia Kalogyrou was dramatically forceful, and mezzo Eleni Liona was convincingly at ease.
Bravos and Thunderous Applause
Taunus-Zeitung 14.05.2005
Bad Homburg. Two outstanding musicians, both women, were enthusiastically celebrated by the audience in Bad Homburg at this season's final evening of symphonic concerts at the Kurtheater: Lisa Xanthopoulou and Gulnora Karimova earned thunderous applause and many cries of "bravo!".
During the opening piece, the overture to Verdi's opera "La Forza del Destino", one could already feel the conductor's stringent determination, as she created many a contrast by dramatically juxtaposing cantabile and dramatic elements. Lisa Xanthopoulou led César Franck's Symphony in d minor brilliantly. She built up great tension during the initial movement, was extremely careful when embarking on dynamics, and led the orchestra in a balanced and comprehensive performance. During the second movement, her conducting defined the undulating theme, and in the last movement she made sure that the recurring motifs from both previous movements flickered discreetly against the brash overall sound.
Michael Jacob
Sculpted Forms - Lisa Xanthopoulou conducts
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 14.05.2005
Ever since she won the conductors' competition in Bad Homburg in 2002, Lisa Xanthopoulou has been a welcome returning guest in this city. Together with the Rheinische Philharmonie State Orchestra, she cut an impressive figure on this evening as well, conducting the opening piece, the overture of Giuseppe Verdi's opera "La Forza del Destino" in a streamlined, consistent and clearly sculpted fashion. The ability she showed in drawing the contours of large units worked to her advantage when it was time for César Franck's Symphony M48 in d minor after the intermission. Despite the fact that the sound was at times too compact, due to an overemphasis of the brass section, Xanthopoulou succeeded in giving an impressive rendition, thanks to supple phrasing and sculpted dynamic contours.
ikt.
"Interpretations with sensitivity and style" - Lisa Xanthopoulou at the helm of Thessaloniki State Orchestra
THESSALONIKI, 7 March 2005
Review: ANTONIS I. KONSTANTINIDES
The concert by Thessaloniki State Orchestra that we attended at this city's Concert Hall on Friday, February 25th, was an outstanding cultural event which should not go unnoticed. Its special quality was an effect that should be a given at any concert. On the one hand, there was a special and interesting theme, in this case "birds", and on the other hand, a clear interpretational perspective.
Perspective and Aesthetics
At the rostrum at the helm of the orchestra was Lisa Xanthopoulou, one of our home town's own conductors, who lives and works abroad, treating her music-loving compatriots to a special evening. We have had occasion in the past to hear Ms Xanthopoulou at work. Stability which coincides with clarity, with regard to the interpretational intentions of her conducting, sensitivity as well as style, which can alternate at will according to the demands of the works, are only some of the determinants which may be of very minor significance to the listener compared to the resulting sound. Yet Lisa Xanthopoulou's conducting always leaves an overriding impression. It is a fertile combination of her professional qualifications and experience earned within the German world of music with the special disposition, the light and warmth of Mediterranean idiosyncrasy, as well as a feminine essence.
The Birds of Music
Those aforementioned elements, clarity and stability, became apparent from the very beginning of the first work, the well-know suite by Tchaikovsky from his ballet Swan Lake. Distinctive phrasing and melodic breathing gave the work a particular force. The interpretation we heard from the State Orchestra, at its best on this evening, brought the delicate introspection of romanticism to the fore boldly, but without excess. The melodiousness, transparent and clear over the orchestral foundation, balanced and harnessed the inherent lyricism without allowing it to override the overall result. The feeling was welcome and unique, based on a view of aesthetics that is quite undeniable....
The key work of the concert was Stravinsky's Firebird Suite. In this work, written for the famous Ballets Russes of Diaghliev, the polychrome orchestral palette, the use of Russian folk melodies and the intense rhythmic fervor render an explosive result, aptly reflecting the Russian spirit. That dynamic magic of rhythm and color was echoed in a remarkable performance.
Guitars set the beat at the Villa Hügel
WAZ Essen, 27.Jan. 2004
Generous applause for the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra and Soloists
It is almost always a sight for sore eyes: this time, a woman was leading the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra and setting the beat, Greek conductor Lisa Xanthopoulou, the recipient of many an international prize and award.
She has a wealth of concert experience, prizes have been bestowed on her and she has been included in the "Maestros of Tomorrow" artists' list of the Conductors' Forum of the German Music Council. No wonder one could feel her energy and precision... and that there was so much applause.
DG
A convincing "Maestra of Tomorrow"
NRZ Essen, January 24th, 2004
Soft Tones from the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra and Guitarist Dylla at the Hügelkonzert
...Furthermore, there was a guest at the rostrum of the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra: her name is Lisa Xanthopoulou, and it is up at the top of the "Maestros of Tomorrow" artists' list. This Greek conductor provided an energetic rendition of Francesco Geminiani's brief Concerto Grosso op.3.4, with vibrant partitions defining the slow passages and clear lines for the quicker ones. Rossini's Sonata for Strings Nr. 6 in D major, developed with a warm, melting sound, is an early work lacking the composer's typical popular handwriting which produced so many evergreen melodies, easy to sing along with even if one has never heard them before; rather, this piece was written in the distinguished chamber style, and there is only the "Tempesta" storm scene with its lightning and driving rain of scales that is an indication of the opera composer Rossini was later to become. In this case, the Ensemble was more successful in terms of musical expression than technical precision.
Expansive Sound Based on Symphonics
Finally, Lisa Xanthopoulou developed an almost symphonically expansive sound for Joaquin Rodrigo's "Fantasia para un Gentilhombre", creating an profusely splendid Southern European atmosphere with a light brass timbre.
Klaus Albrecht