CCMusic.com

The Beethoven symphonies: all nine of them stunning masterworks, all nine performed countless times. Be that as it may, there are conductors who can re-contextualize these symphonies in such a way that they sound completely new, as Iván Fischer proved in 2013 and 2014 in his Beethoven Series with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, spread out over two seasons. This is a veritable journey of discovery through a familiar landscape. Conductor and composer Ivan Fischer is founder and Music Director of the Budapest Festival Orchestra. As a guest conductor, Fischer leads every year two weeks of programs with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. "Fischer's Beethoven: As if the ink is still wet" Volkskrant "RCO plays a perfect Pastoral... The swinging Seventh [...] can compete with the legendary performance of Carlos Kleiber..." Het Parool "Fischer shed new light on Beethoven" NRC Handelsblad.