Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra / Holliger, Rachmaninov, Berlioz
"He presented a sharp and witty performance which gave a new impression of the Nagoya Philharmonic.
Fischer is unique for his clear-cut interpretation of works without any vagueness, and for his smart and urbanized sense that conveys abundant expression without making it too complex.
Keep an eye on the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra's future progress with Fischer, who is clearly pointing out a new direction for its music."
The Chunichi Shimbun, July 2008
"The surprising freshness of this piece was supported by the fine performance of the orchestra members who showed both curiosity about the work and empathy with their conductor.
Fischer's movements were large yet purposeful. His body expressed precise visualization of the beat and of the images conveyed by sound."
The Asahi Shimbun, July 2008
BBC National Orchestra of Wales / Dutilleux weekend
“Conductor Thierry Fischer balanced the colours beautifully in Dutilleux's Second Symphony, Le Double, where the solo ensemble of 12 orchestral principals made the interplay of forces a subtly dynamic element.”
The Guardian, February 2008
Utah Symphony / Rodrigo, Berlioz & Ravel
"… his no-holds-barred reading of Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique left the audience shouting its approval and the orchestra giving hearty bow taps and foot stamps."
The Salt Lake Tribune, October 2007
"Fischer brought vitality, vibrancy, drive and electricity to his reading. It was insightful and penetrating, and he explored the music in depth, bringing it to life dramatically. Once again, Fischer elicited a nuanced performance from the orchestra, and it, in turn, played at its highest level of musicianship and virtuosity."
Deseret Morning News, October 2007
Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Mozart Gran Partita
"Thierry Fischer was aristocratically broad in his pacing of the great work, whose performance by this elite team of players was suffused with warmth and a sense of complete engagement. … Everything in the conductor's vision of the music, with its characterful minuets, bustling allegros, and two divine slow movements, had a radiantly benign profile."
The Herald, October 2007
BBC National Orchestra of Wales / BBC Proms 2007
"Fischer conducted like a florid version of Pierre Boulez: no baton, every bar gripped by hands working with mathematical precision."
The Times, August 2007
"[In Fauré's Requiem], Fauré's brand of hedonistic spirituality was conveyed well under Thierry Fischer's serenely unflappable direction."
The Evening Standard, July 2007
BBC National Orchestra of Wales / Schmitt (Hyperion)
"Thierry Fischer's no-holds-barred approach brings Schmitt's Psalm and Salomé to vivid life. Terrific stuff."
Classic FM Magazine, July 2007
"The performances under Thierry Fischer are first rate."
The Guardian, June 2007
Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Berg / Shubert
"A highly perceptive and eerily moving performance ... Nothing short of triumphant ... Conductor Thierry Fischer kept a tense and expert eye on all the detailed threads running through this elaborate musical labyrinth."
The Scotsman, April 2007
"The symphony, as firmly demonstrated by the SCO with conductor Thierry Fischer, is a wonderful case study in ambiguity and, in a performance of this calibre, provides sizzling aural entertainment ... Conductor Fischer's translucent texturing of the music, and the SCO's pellucid and often dazzlingly articulate playing, effortlessly proclaimed the greatness of the work."
The Telegraph, April 2007
"The ensemble held together the intricacies of rhythm remarkably well ... There was more than a touch of operatic pathos and drama in Fischer's performance - driven and decisive with plenty of surprising twists and turns on the way."
The Guardian, April 2007
BBC National Orchestra of Wales - on tour in the United States
"...the Welsh orchestra, conducted by Thierry Fischer, was outstanding from the downbeat."
Washington Post, January 2007
"The interpretation [of Brahms Symphony No. 2] by conductor Thierry Fischer, who did not use a musical score, was energetic and beautiful. It was a treat to watch Mr. Fischer as he cajoled, challenged and encouraged his players. The final notes brought the audience to its feet..."
Fairfax Chronicle, January 2007
Netherlands Radio Kammer Filharmonie / Beethoven / Haydn / Ayres / Crane / De Falla
"Thierry Fischer conducted the Radio Kamer Filharmonie with a lot of confidence. Sometimes he contented himself with gently guiding the orchestra - quite rightly, when you hear what the players delivered, an excellent performance (especially in the Beethoven Overture and in El Amor Brujo by De Falla)."
NRC Handelsblad, December 2006
BBC National Orchestra of Wales / Messiaen / Schmitt
"Fischer's conducting managed to be both incisive and expansive; he controlled the virtuosic element of the writing with a firm hand but allowed the highly sensuous and exotic eastern element of Messiaen's soundworld to envelop the hall. The fifth movement, Joie du Sang des Etoiles , was all energy and vibrant passion, but the work's overall structure was astutely judged, always progressing to its glorious climax. Fischer voiced the different facets of Messiaen's colouristic effects with care, with the often painfully obtrusive ondes martinot (played by Jacques Tchamkerten) more subtly incorporated, complementing rather than fighting the glittering piano of Roger Muraro. It was heady stuff."
The Guardian, October 2006
Basel Symphony Orchestra - opening of the season
"Right from the start one could hear that the musicians were highly motivated and eager to show off these musical goodies to the audience. In this they were helped by the fiery leadership of the 49-year-old conductor from Geneva, Thierry Fischer - an ambitious, disciplined bundle of energy, who knows what he wants and clearly communicates it in his conducting."
Baseler Zeitung, August 2006
"The Summer break had obviously done the orchestra good, and the 49-year-old Thierry Fischer, whose career is largely in the UK, was a motivating force, and one with a talent for glitz as well as for the aesthetic flow. This was felt above all in the performances of the opening and closing works, the carnival overtures of Berlioz and Dvorak, which were notable not only for the strong brass and brilliant strings, but also (particularly in the Berlioz) for the emotional intensity communicated by the whole orchestra."
Basellandschaftliche Zeitung, August 2006
Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France / Prokofiev
"Replacing Myung Whun Chung was the Swiss conductor Thierry Fischer, who had already had the distinction of enabling the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France to follow Argerich in the Prokofiev, and who (in Les Noces ) was not content simply to mark time - he communicated his personal vision of the work: energetic, wild, over the top."
Le Figaro, February 2006
Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Haydn / Brahms / Bruch
"With four bassoons - including the sinister growl of the contra-bassoon - making up half the ensemble, this little beauty purred along like a vintage Rolls-Royce. Swiss conductor Thierry Fischer moulded its four movements with minimal intervention, but maximum effect."
"[Brahms's Haydn variations ] is a work that often suffers from over-indulgence. Fischer, however, took the lean, clean approach, focusing on the score's sharp-edged textures and inbuilt rollercoaster momentum. Nothing lingered, everything connected."
The Scotsman, November 2005
BBC National Orchestra of Wales / Haydn's Creation
"Fischer shows a confidence with this exuberant work, maintaining consistency and balance in the orchestra, travelling through the hugely contrasting atmospheres in the work from chilling thunders to beautiful love duets and music that is enough to make you jump with joy - even on a gloomy October evening.
Although he does not take up his prestigious position until next year, [if] the excellence of the performance and the warmth and enthusiasm of the audience at this uplifting performance of Haydn's The Creation is anything to go by, we are in for an orchestral feast."
Western Mail , October 2005
Records Françaix Le Roi Nu & Les Demoiselles de la Nuit / Ulster Orchestra (Hyperion)
"Both scores are vivid and charming; the performances under Thierry Fischer have just the right lightness of touch."
The Guardian, March 2005
Münchner Kammerorchester / Italian works
"The Kammerorchester played with concentration and communication. There was a give and take, a questioning and answering, the kind you can usually only dream of."
Süddeutsche Zeitung, December 2004
Ulster Orchestra / Wagner / Sibelius / Harty
"A triumphant performance at the centre of a thoroughly satisfying concert."
Belfast Telegraph, September 2004
Ulster Orchestra / Strauss Don Juan
"Fischer's taut but flexible Don Juan proved a convincing demonstration of the rapport he has built up with the Ulster Orchestra. This was assured and incisive playing which could nevertheless relax meltingly when required."
Irish Times, September 2004
Ulster Orchestra / Françaix / Hyperion CDA67384
"The sound is bright and brilliant … But it's a good match for the music, as are Thierry Fischer's blend of precision and chic and the clean edges of the Ulster players' performances."
BBC Music Magazine, June 2004
Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Françaix / Britten/ Vaughan Williams / Ravel
"Thierry Fischer conducted a performance that struck the perfect balance between poise and perniciousness."
The Scotsman, May 2004
Philharmonia Orchestra /Brighton Festival Chorus / Morgan / Tippett / Janacek
"Maestro Fischer got the best sound from the BFC I have ever heard…Overall, this was an opening concert of great power, great subtly, fine performance, and, above all, excitement."
The Argus, May 2004
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Dutilleux / Ravel / Berlioz
"Such was Fischer's engagement with his players that the musical ideas had a vividness and immediacy that made the Dutilleux seem like a concerto for orchestra…"
The Guardian, March 2004
Ulster Orchestra / Weber / Chopin / Dvorák
"…Dvorák's Symphony No. 7 in D Minor…is a formidable symphonic argument that chief conductor Thierry Fischer paced and shaped beautifully. Throughout he nurtured the lyrical lines to great effect."
Belfast Telegraph, February 2004
"…Thierry Fischer remained faithful to the composer's scoring but subtly lightened his textures, providing a mobile, cleary articulated framework for the young Polish pianist Ewa Kupiec [in Chopin's First Piano Concerto]…If a dance-like feel persisted in the most emotionally charged parts of the outer movements of the Dvorák symphony, it was to the music's advantage. This was one of the finest things Fischer has given us, well paced, carefully detailed, and capturing the work's moods of drama, sentiment and nostalgia."
The Irish Times, February 2004
Colorado Symphony Orchestra / Cinderella
"He was at his best on the second half in a stirring interpretation of excerpts from Sergei Prokofiev's masterful 20th Century ballet Cinderella, as he captured the emotional sweep and often intense beauty of this evocative, totally involving score…Highlights could be found in virtually every facet of the work, from the piercing, piquant harmonies of the wrenching 'Midnight' section to the rich, plush sound Fischer drew from the orchestra as he reveled in the sheer beauty of 'The Prince and Cinderella' ."
Denver Post, January 2004
Saarbrücken RSO / Excerpts from Prokofiev's Cinderella Suits Nos. 1 & 3 / Berlin Classics
"Fischer gauges his heroine's longing for happiness to perfection, finds an ideal spring for the ballroom Mazurka and once again gives his woodwind soloists free rein, this time to project the angularities of the ugly sisters. We shall be hearing much more from him."
BBC Music Magazine, November 2003
Zurich Chamber Orchestra / Haydn
"Fischer's suggestive facial expressions and hand gestures spurred the orchestra on to a committed and colourful ensemble sound, from which the small and large solos emerged as outstanding highlights."
Neue Zürcher Zeitung, November 2003
Ulster Orchestra / Nielsen / Brahms / Sibelius
"Thierry Fischer got the concert off to a vigorous start with Nielsen's Overture to Maskarade ... Fischer was on his tip-toes for this, urging his colleagues on to produce an electrifying performance that soared along with impressive energy... [In the Piano Concerto] Fischer and the orchestra provided an impressive accompaniment, again musically balanced and totally at one with the soloist."
Irish News, May 2003
"Thierry Fischer…brought us a programme that will long remain in the memory."
Belfast Telegraph, May 2003
Ulster Orchestra / Mozart / Schubert
"Fischer, again with an ever-watchful eye for dramatic potential, asked for an amazing range of dynamism, often dropping from a huge fortissimo to a whispered pianissimo within the space of a bar…this was an outstanding concert."
Irish News, April 2003
Ulster Orchestra / Schubert / Britten / Stravinsky
"Under the direction of Principal Conductor Thierry Fischer, and led by Lucy Drennan, the orchestra gave a stylishly elegant reading of this delightfully transparent piece. Written without percussion and with a minimum of brass, it was a good opportunity to hear the string section which has been working at a very high level under Mr. Fischer's benign direction."
Irish News, March 2003
"Fischer and his forces were in excellent form, adding much to a programme that was both rewarding and in which audience support was both enthusiastic and well deserved."
Belfast Telegraph, March 2003
Ulster Orchestra / Françaix
"Again and again while listening to Thierry Fischer's ebullient performances I smile and wish that I had met Jean Françaix."
Gramophone, Decermber 2002
Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne / Françaix
"The whole piece is lifted and taut under the direction of Thierry Fischer, whose precise gestures create a constant explosion of vitality".
L'Impartial, November 2002
Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Dempster / Mahler / Schoenberg
"Under Thierry Fischer, the SCO was in fine fettle"
The Scotsman, October 2002
"The Orchestra, under the baton of the young Swiss conductor making his debut with the SCO, was on top form."
Edinburghguide.com, October 2002
Ulster Orchestra / Volans / Dalberto / Grieg / Sibelius
"And here, Fischer's influence really began to be felt. He created a framework spacious, yet tautly enough controlled, to maximize the energy of this band of scarcely more than 60 players."
The Times, September 2002
Ulster Orchestra / Françaix / Hyperion
"The Ulster Orchestra under Thierry Fischer play with panache and, where asked for, with sensitivity".
Gramophone, September 2002
"This very enjoyable programme is magnificently advocated by Thierry Fischer, who has managed to draw from his Northern Irish orchestra the most charming sonorities and subtle phrasing…"
Répertoire, August 2002
"…This is an hour of pure joy."
BBC Music Magazine, July 2002
Australian Chamber Orchestra / Ives / Schubert
"Fischer invested the famous Schubert two-movement symphony with surprising energy, keeping the work's argument moving and making space for very clear-speaking wind and brass choirs. Where many conductors swap these elegiac pages in string sentiment, this young visitor produced a reading in line with the group's elegant iconoclasm, maintaining the composer's moving lyricism but underpinning the work with tensile athleticism."
The Age, June 2002
"Finally, the conductor brought a passionate and dramatic approach to Schubert's endearing two-movement Symphony No. 8 in B Minor, his 'Unfinished Symphony', which gave new vitality to this familiar music. With fine playing from the orchestra the performance glowed with life, and made a memorable conclusion to this extremely rewarding concert."
Canberra Times, June 2002
Hallé Orchestra / Hemmings arr. Collins / Ravel / Nielsen / Stravinsky
"Both here [Hemmings arr. Collins 'Threnody'] and in the suite from Ravel's ballet Mother Goose , Fischer coaxed elegantly crafted playing from the strings, who responded warmly to his sensitive approach. Fischer and the Hallé did full justice to the flamboyance with which Stravinsky characterized the Russian playground - vibrant, energetic playing, tinged with a rawness that brought his urban soundscape to life."
The Guardian, April 2002
Ulster Orchestra / Gribbin / Mendelssohn / Berg
"Fischer opened new avenues of appreciation, thanks to his acute pacing of the first three, purely orchestral movements and the expansive incandescence - rather than the usual portentousness - he brought to the choral finale."
Daily Telegraph, October 2001
Ensemble Modern / Wolpe / Feldman / Holt / Schönberg
"The gradations and differentiations became inspiring through the superb conducting of Thierry Fischer. His very precise gestures found their exact correlation in the power of conversely the reticence of the musicians' articulation…"
Frankfurter Rundschau, December 2000
Ulster Orchestra
"Schubert's Great Symphony was also a most prestigious account of a classic and Thierry Fischer's command of his forces was admirable, in fact the best Schubert performance in the series we have so far heard".
Belfast Telegraph, December 2002