PRESS
VÉRONIQUE GENS, soprano
"J’ai vécu une très belle expérience avec Jakob, lors de notre première rencontre, une écoute attentive et une bienveillance rassurante. Il respire avec le chanteur et lui apporte tout le soutien et l’attention dont il pourrait avoir besoin, un vrai plaisir!"
"I had a very nice experience with Jakob during our first meeting, an attentive listening and a reassuring benevolence. He breathes with the singer and gives them all the support and attention they might need, a real pleasure!"
WILL CRUTCHFIELD, conductor & musicologist
"The whole premise of Teatro Nuovo would have been impossible without someone like Jakob Lehmann - a leader who knows opera and voices like the back of his hand, knows everything about belcanto performance practice, and is capable of guiding an orchestra in instantaneous response to what is happening on the stage."
North Carolina Opera, Raleigh - Verdi: Ernani, November 2024
"Conductor Jakob Lehmann ensured the large group of musicians sang and played as one, moving the two-and-a-half-hour production along at an engaging pace." - Cultural Voice of North Carolina
Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Schubert, Bloquert, and Beethoven, Les Siècles, October 2024
"Parisians were allowed to discover a young conductor with a great future…in this programme, we found all his qualities: precision, rigour and flexibility. In Schubert, we are immediately seduced by the conductor's supple hand and his sense of contrast, which alternately makes the orchestra sing and the tragedy rumble without any feeling of discontinuity…The orchestra responds without fail to his precise conducting with expressive but always measured gestures. His Beethoven is uniformly taut, fast, muscular…He highlights the richness of the timbre of the woodwinds and brass, whose sometimes slightly ironic remarks pierce a perfectly homogeneous string ensemble. The most fascinating moment of this performance is surely the third movement, where the conductor subtly lets the instruments whisper before launching into the final allegro with controlled fury, ending the concert on an enthusiastic note that earned him a great deal of applause, also from the visibly ecstatic orchestra.” - Musicologie.org
Brucknerfest Linz, Mozart and Bruckner, Les Siècles, October 2024
"Before Lehmann interpreted the Bruckner symphony, he conducted Mozart's Jupiter Symphony. His firm grip on the score left enough room for the divine weightlessness and soulfulness that we love so much about the Salzburg master. There was much that was new to hear in Lehmann's interpretation of Bruckner. The sharply contoured sound image was remarkably colourful, and even the occasional clusters of sound were astonishingly transparent. These sometimes unusual sounds were embedded in a breathtaking dramaturgy of intensification that did not shy away from eruptive outbursts. The raw, pounding motorisation of the Scherzo was fascinating due to the contrast with the Trio, which came across as spooky, light and airy... When the last movement, the powerful and yet so intimate Adagio, came to a peaceful close, there was an emotional silence before the audience showed their appreciation with increasingly enthusiastic applause and standing ovations." - Kieler Nachrichten
"Mozart's last symphony is laid out weightlessly and airily; the third movement is particularly dance-like, in keeping with its root as a minuet. The concluding “molto allegro” is indeed played very quickly, but always remains precise. Despite all the changes in style, especially in the first movement, everything remains compact, is of one piece. All in all, an outstanding interpretation of this well-known classic, with a velvety and lively tone…The orchestra presents the huge sound surfaces of the Bruckner symphony with just as much precision and transparency as the Mozart. Here, too, the conductor chooses relatively high tempi (total duration a good 50 minutes!), although the overall impression always remains plausible and emotionally stirring…A very special brilliance from the many horns is always wonderfully accentuated: Jakob Lehmann has the sound balance just as precisely under control as he doses the enormous overall dynamics of the large orchestra and carefully builds climaxes and arcs of tension. The weightiness and (possibly only hollow??) dignity of slower performances can thus be questioned in a well-founded manner…This concert was a first-class pleasure, which was rewarded by the audience with loud enthusiasm and standing ovations.“ - Online Merker
Kasser Theater, Montclair & Rose Theater, New York City, July 2024 - Bellini: I Capuleti e i Montecchi
"Lehmann would lead the performance with equal measures of charm and authority. From the first notes, the audience was transported into a sonic world far removed from that generally experienced in most opera houses." - New York Classical Review
"Lehmann, Teatro Nuovo’s associate artistic director since 2019, rose to Bellini’s pacing and balance challenges. Instead of seeping the music in melancholy, he tapped into the overarching tension and unease of the inevitable double tragedy to help push the narrative forward...Teatro Nuovo always follows a blueprint of the old performance styles, but they encourage experimentation and spontaneity. This was most evident in the overture, which Lehmann took at a dizzying “più mosso” clip. Shifts between pianos and fortes, and rallentandos and accelerandos were gloriously tumultuous and ferocious. Lehmann also knew when to hold back, like fermatas during cantabiles to ensure that principals weren’t bogged down...From conductor to chorus, exploratory interpretations brought out new perspectives to Bellini’s old, familiar work. For Teatro Nuovo, it is “mission accomplished.”" - NJ Arts
"Leading the orchestra on this evening was Jakob Lehmann who led a a swiftly paced reading with the music always having a forward propulsion. Lehmann balanced the more intimate scenes with subtle and nuanced dynamics and tempi and then there was the explosive moments in the more dramatic scenes as the Act one ensemble and the Act two duet with Tebaldo and Romeo. The overture was also thrilling, getting the opera off to an energetic start...it was a thrilling reading that gave the opera suspense and unpredictability, and was always willing to take risks." - Operawire
"Lehmann favored forward moving, lively tempos taking time to luxuriate in lyrical passages." - Parterre.com
"Per quanto riguarda la resa musicale dell’opera, questa orchestra è stata particolarmente efficace nel ritrarre i momenti più lirici di Bellini. Questi passaggi avevano una sfumatura più naturale, più vicina alla purezza del flauto di Pan che alla perfezione di un'orchestra di fine Ottocento. D’altra parte, le situazioni bellicose e concitate dell’opera erano mantenute brillanti e sonore, grazie all’energica direzione del direttore Jakob Lehmann e alle ridotte dimensioni del Rose Theater, che hanno permesso all’orchestra di riempire facilmente di suono tutta la sala." - OperaClick
CD reviews, Rossini: L'italiana in Algeri, Pan Classics/Note1, Eroica Berlin, May 2024
"Cette Italienne à Alger débordante d'énergie secoue vigoureusement nos habitudes d'écoute. Première surprise: les récitatifs sont accompagnés non seulement d'un pianoforte, mais d'une contrebasse et surtout d'un violoncelle, dont les improvisations confèrent énormément de naturel et de vivacité à la comédie. En s'inspirant des pratiques musicales du premier quart du xixe siècle, le chef jakob Lehmann demande par ailleurs à la section des cordes d'user abondamment du portamento et autres procédés d'exécution comme le battuto, qui ajoutent des effets de cocasserie extrêmement heureux...Au sein d'une équipe de jeunes chanteurs, Hannah Ludwig se distingue en Isabella au superbe timbre de mezzo et à la virtuosité souvent ébouriffante." - Classica
"You have to have this ‘Italiana’ on your CD shelf!...The recording is meticulous, curious, full of relish. Ruthlessly fast-paced at times, beguiling in the instrumental parts, but not disturbing for the singers."" Fono Forum (5 star rating)
"The real star of this version is, for once, the orchestra...While Rossini's work had already been the subject of a number of experiments on period instruments, none had ever gone so far in terms of musicological research, and the result is singularly seductive. At the heart of this astonishing approach is conductor Jakob Lehmann, whose "historically informed" approach has led to a radically new interpretation of Rossini's music, full of freedom, in which the orchestra itself no longer accompanies but really carries the action, with inventive phrasing, a sense of rhythm, accents and lines, and impressive virtuosity in relentless, rigorously precise accelerandi. We'll savor the lightness of the woodwinds, the varied colors of the brass and, as a bonus, especially in the overture, a play on variations and appogiaturas that completely renews the spirit. It may come as a surprise that this novelty comes to us from Germany, where the Eroica Berlin orchestra is based, with Jakob Lehmann as founding conductor. With its entirely reworked orchestration, a rhythm full of surprises and astonishing rebounds, this recording, made on the spot in a small Berlin theater, is certainly not perfect, but it communicates a jubilant sensation that never fails. It gives the impression of constantly rediscovering this little masterpiece of "organized and complete madness" (dixit Stendhal) by a 21-year-old composer, entirely refreshed by new colors and communicative verve. The new Rossini has arrived, and it's an excellent vintage." - Avant-Scène Opéra
"Right on the first measurements I was upright. A live recording (from the Delphi Theater in Berlin), a small label, young soloists, a conductor who is not known as Rossini specialist - it was reminiscent of the recordings from the Rossini Festival in Bad Wildbad: fun, sympathetic but not something to have great expectations of. It was different and even became a big surprise! Not only because of the sparkling performances, but mainly because of the way in which conductor Jakob Lehmann and the Eroica Berlin ensemble have handled the score...The exact influence of these elements separately is difficult to determine, but from the first bars of the overture, in which a playful oboe of the strings is a playful oboe, result is a wonderful musical party. Surprising is the timbre that reminiscences evokes in the overture to Mozart's Entfuhrung (the 'banda turca'!), but after that the opera sounds fresher, clearer, sharperly articulate and especially much more sparkling than I have ever heard. It results in a swirling whole fetched resting points (Lindoro’s subtly varied 'Languir per una bella' has a remarkably dramatic effect here!) and a humor that comes all the way from the music, without imposed 'humorist' effect. It is striking that in this 'number opera' thanks to the constant, colorful but never overly vivid recitatives the suggestion of single songs is slight. It is as if arias and ensembles are included in an ongoing stream of music that gives the impression of an uncomposed, but homogeneous and closed music drama. And after the sound world evoked by Lehmann and Eroica Berlin, that was the second surprise for me." - OpusKlassiek
"The young conductor Jakob Lehmann seems to be obsessed with Rossini's music. The overture immediately makes you sit up and take notice. There are things here that you have never heard before, because although Lehmann is a friend of historically informed interpretation and follows the original text, he also reads between the lines by consulting early manuscript copies... This leads to astonishing insights that are as exciting as they are enjoyable to listen to. One of the most striking changes compared to conventional recordings is the use of violoncello, double bass and fortepiano in the recitatives - what a difference to the usual “dull” harpsichord! Lehmann is able to animate the Eroica Berlin orchestra not only to highly inspired playing, but also to a multitude of delicious details that will delight any musical gourmet…The bass-baritone David Ostrek is a powerful Mustafa and Hannah Ludwig can certainly stand up to him with her profound mezzo-soprano. Milos Bulajić masters the difficult role of Lindoro with astonishing success. Polly Ott (Elvira, soprano), Laura Murphy (Zulma, mezzo-soprano), Adam Kutny (Haly, baritone) and Manuel Walser (Taddeo, baritone) form a well-balanced ensemble together with the protagonists.” - Das Opernglas
"In 2024, it is the turn of Pan Classics to present their version of this buffo favorite by adding to the roster an uncannily spontaneous take. Recorded at a live performance from 2022, it proves unpretentious, as conductor Jakob Lehmann and his cast of junior soloists manage to maintain a riveting freshness throughout its two hours and twenty-six minutes of playing time…the cast sings with unending enthusiasm and near faultless precision. The crisp stance adopted by the ensemble of Eroica Berlin...produces the closest to a period sound yet heard on any recording of “L’Italiana”. Conductor Lehmann leads with a swift, yet inspired hand whose brisk tempi powerfully drive the action forward. His relentless enthusiasm make the recording uncompromising in its directness, and thanks to the spontaneity of the soloists it conveys the very thrill of a live performance.” - OperaWire
"This is the recording of a turbulent Berlin performance from 2022...(it) conveys a new, fresh view on Rossini of the younger generation...Jakob Lehmann's vision of a streamlined, historically informed but never dogmatically rigid Rossini buffa is striking. The ensemble performance impresses and inspires...Hannah Ludwig's powerful-voiced and witty Isabella is particularly convincing." - RBB RadioDrei
"Jakob Lehmann clearly sets his own emphasis. His orchestral line-up and instrumentation strives for authenticity...and allows the instrumentalists a degree of improvisational freedom in the solo passages that is usually only granted to the singers. It is particularly striking that the recitatives are accompanied not only by a keyboard instrument, but also by cello, double bass and fortepiano, which provides more potential for interpretation and gives these moments additional weight...The singing of the exclusively young soloists may not always be for purists, but that is not the intention. Rather, the aim is to create maximum liveliness. And they succeed. From the very first minute, the atmosphere tingles, the musical balls fly back and forth at a crazy tempo and the joy of playing is transmitted. There are some veritable discoveries, for example when David Ostrek plays Mustafá with a great deal of comic flair or Hannah Ludwig lets her headstrong Isabella roar aggressively and carefree, only to immediately soar to purer heights again...Which brings us back to Stendhal, who said that it is precisely this opera that makes you forget all the misery in the world. Perhaps it is currently enjoying particular popularity because of the increased demand for such forgetting - at any rate, it works perfectly here in all its freshness." - Musikansich.de
"There is enormous musical spontaneity achieved by conductor Jakob Lehmann. Also noteworthy is the historically informed orchestral playing, which is unusual for its dry sharpness and fine chasing, but stands out for its rare richness of detail...The vocal ensemble is young and sings with enthusiasm. David Ostrek is a pleasantly singing (i.e. not exaggerating) Mustafa, Hannah Ludwig a characterful and vocally quite remarkable, full-sounding Isabella." - Pizzicato.lu
Brucknerhaus Linz, May 2024 - Charles Ives
"In all the works, you can sense the desire to seek out new tonal and formal solutions. The young conductor Jakob Lehmann and his no less young musicians (of Eroica Berlin) realized this perfectly, finely balancing the subtle sound world and at the same time evoking great emotions. An enthusiastic performance that more than did justice to Ives' eccentricity and completely thrilled the audience. An impressive birthday concert for Charles Ives in all respects." - Oberösterreichische Nachrichten
North Carolina Opera, Raleigh, February 2024 - Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia
"Conductor Jakob Lehmann kept the pace sprightly while giving his performers plenty of time to make the various characters their own." - Cultural Voice of North Carolina
"Maestro Lehmann’s choices of tempi were quicker than one normally hears in performances of Barber. These choices, first and foremost, set the mood for the opera. In the overture we heard the frenetics that were to come. He eschewed some of the Romantic conventions of wildly fluctuating tempi..., drawn out cadenzas, or some of the flashier interpolations of high notes in the arias...The result was...well paced, exciting, and really served to drive the action." - Triangle Sings
"A Splendid North Carolina Opera Production of Rossini's The Barber of Seville...Jakob Lehmann does a fantastic job conducting the orchestra and graciously acknowledged his musicians each time the audience applauded. The music was performed wonderfully by our marvelous North Carolina Opera Orchestra." - Triangle Review
CD reviews, "Mozart 1791", Warner Classics, Pierre Génisson, Concerto Köln, fall 2023
"Für das pulsierende dramatische Fundament sorgen die aufmerksam mitatmenden und knackig dagegenhaltenden Topmusiker von Concerto Köln unter der straffen Leitung von Jakob Lehmann." - Rondo Magazin
"Ce disque [est] accompagné avec tant d’éloquence par Concerto Köln et le jeune Jakob Lehmann." - Artamag
"[Le] très bel album « Mozart 1791 », que Pierre Génisson a réalisé avec le Concerto Köln, dirigé par l’excellent Jakob Lehmann." - Concertclassic.com
"A ce jeu‑là, le mouvement le plus réussi est sans doute le Rondo : Allegro conclusif où l’entrain gagne le Concerto Köln, dirigé sagement mais avec beaucoup de naturel par Jakob Lehmann." - ConcertoNet.com
"A beguiling, but also touching performance." - BBC Music Magazine
"A concerto, then painted in exquisite, subtle pastels, rather than brighter hues." - Gramophone
Opéra National de Lorraine, Nancy, September/October 2023 - Mozart: Idomeneo
"Conductor Jakob Lehmann opts for authenticity. His highly articulate conducting, with its lively, alert string sound, nurtures the drama and supports the stage perfectly." - ResMusica.com
"The Orchestre de l'Opéra national de Lorraine follows the energetic tempi of conductor Jakob Lehmann, who gives the score its sense of intensity and dramatic urgency, while radiating a confident assurance with a rigorous beat." - Ôlyrix
"Jakob Lehmann conducts an impeccable Nancy phalanx with finesse and impetuosity." - Operamag.com
Kasser Theater, Montclair & Rose Theater, New York City, July 2023 - Donizetti: Poliuto
"Teatro Nuovo made a strong case for Poliuto as an opera worthy of dramatic as well as musical rediscovery. Conductor Jakob Lehmann opted for swift tempi and transparent textures that kept the action flowing." - Bachtrack
"Jakob Lehmann led the period-instrument orchestra with fierce precision and great care for the singers. The orchestra was at audience level, so he and the players were visible. The clarity was remarkable – spicy woodwinds, braying (valveless) horns, and gut strings brought the music forward. More ideally performed bel canto, please." - Classicstoday.com
"The orchestra’s almost musky timbre made it a versatile collaborator. In the concertato at the end of Act II of “Poliuto,” it complemented rather than competed with the singers, with transparent textures that allowed the mildly lustrous voices to come through...Jakob Lehmann relished accelerating the tempo of concluding allegros and guided the music with such subtlety that even staccatos had shape to them." - New York Times
"Teatro Nuovo’s production of Donizetti’s Poliuto is a bel canto dream come true...Jakob Lehmann performed [his] duties expertly, in a performance that was as aurally arresting as it was dramatically exciting. There is no pit in the Rose Theater, and the orchestra is practically on the same level as the singers, but balance was never an issue. One of the most musically satisfying scenes came in the Act III finale with Lehmann’s harnessing of soloists, chorus and orchestra to create a complex musical depiction of conflicting emotions. The ensemble functions musically and dramatically much as does the Sextet in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, and this performance made one wonder why it is not as equally famous." - SeenAndHeardInternational
"Jakob Lehmann is an astute musician who leads with power...[he] was a thrill to watch. He’d punch the air hard when the score called for orchestral hits. Pow! He used small cues with the vocalists—wiggles of the fingers, slight hand gestures, and nods. Frenzy seamlessly segued into gracefulness...Tutti passages filled the theater and the soul while muted moments pulled you forward in your seat. Lehmann and his band were as near flawless as could be...Lehmann doesn’t dabble in Bel Canto; it’s his performer, conductor, and researcher specialty. His contract with Teatro Nuovo began in 2019 and was extended through 2025. “Poliuto” showed why." - OperaWire
"The period-instrument orchestra was authoritatively led by Jakob Lehmann...the orchestra played with verve and flexibility." Wall Street Journal
"The action didn’t flag for a moment, under the supple conducting of Associate Artistic Director Jakob Lehmann with the exciting and historically accurate orchestra of Teatro Nuovo and a wonderful chorus." - Broadyway World
"Jakob Lehmann lead Poliuto with skill and dispatch." - Classical Voice America
"Jakob Lehmann made the best possible use of Donizetti's beautiful score, offering a finely historicized reading, refined, with a dynamic pulse and full of energy." - pro ópera
"The conductor Jakob Lehmann brought out the urgency and grandeur of the score." - Opera News
Rose Theater, New York City, November 2022 - Rossini: Maometto secondo
"With the musical direction of Jakob Lehmann at the podium..., the performance often thrummed with intensity" - Parterre.com
"The musicians were led by the marvelous Jakob Lehmann...In this performance we experienced the orchestra as a character in the story, not just a support for the singers." - Voce di Meche
"Lehmann ensured that the orchestra could sound impressively robust without covering the voices." - Musical America
Theater im Delphi, Berlin, October 2022 - Rossini: L'italiana in Algeri
"The enterprising young outfit Eroica Berlin...is committed to historically informed practice. This encompassed the orchestra's seating plan and the employment of a relatively large cello and double bass section, its members positioned left, middle and right of the orchestra. Secco recitatives were accompanied by an inventive trio of fortepiano, cello and double bass. Great agogic freedom was encouraged throughout, with woodwind principals freely embellishing their solos. Conducting from the fortepiano, Lehmann kept everybody on their collective toes in an effervescent reading of the uncut score. I was pleased to see a particular bête noire of mine addressed: although vocal parts were generously decorated, singers refrained from ending arias or ensembles with attention-grabbing high notes...Much care was taken over the idiomatic shaping of the text, which came across vividly...The fun - and there was lots of it - came, as it should, from the score." - Opera.co.uk
"Bei den vom Ensemble Eroica Berlin unter dem mit Rossini wohlvertrauten Jakob Lehmann organisierten drei Vorstellungen ist es aber auch die spezielle Praxis des Musizierens, die einen spannenden Abend garantiert...Die Musik...klingt präsent und transparent – ungetrübter Genuss der fein ziselierten Details von Rossinis Partitur ist garantiert. Und noch deutlicher hört man die Verzierungen und liebevoll ausgearbeiteten Phrasierungs- und Dynamik-Finessen, denen sich die jungen Musikerinnen und Musiker des Orchesters widmen. Denn Eroica Berlin erhebt den Anspruch, Rossinis Musik historisch informiert aufzuführen. Das sorgt in der Tat für ein frisches, detailreiches, im Vergleich zu üblichen Darbietungen kühleres, brillantes, aber auch luftiges Klangbild... – wie überhaupt die Tutti scharf und kurz gefasst sind und damit einen „lärmigen“ Eindruck von Rossinis Musik nicht aufkommen lassen...Rossinis Musik bekommt dieser Zugang so gut – man höre nur, wie vielgestaltig und harmonisch interessant auf einmal die einleitenden Pizzicati des Preludio wirken –, dass man sich fragt, warum so etwas nicht bei Rossini-Festivals wie Pesaro zur Diskussion gestellt wird." - OnlineMerker
"Was ich da gestern Abend erlebte..., verschlug mir fast die Sprache! So ein extraordinär vormusizierter Gioachino - so derart raffiniert getrieben und, bei aller frischluftigen Angetriebenheit, nicht minder transparent - war mir bis dato in realo völlig fremd, obgleich ich ihn mir freilich im Geheimen so oder so ähnlich wünschte. Ja und Fakt war, ist und bleibt, dass ausschließlich wohl nur mit solchen Mitteln (Instrumentarium, Art zu musizieren) also unter strikter "Einhaltung" oder Beachtung aktueller Forschungen hinsichtlich historisch informierter Aufführungspraktiken derart bahnbrechende musiziererische Leistungen erst möglich werden; Naganos Rheingold mit Concerto Köln, um nur eines der neuesten und in praxi gelungenen Beispiele zu nennen, sprach/spricht eindeutig und einladend dafür...Lehmann übt also Totalkontrolle aus; ich konnte keine A-Synchronitäten konstatieren. Er nimmt die Gesamtbelegschaft mit und scheint sie fortlaufend zu inspirieren und mit seiner guten Laune permanent voranzutreiben. Es sieht hochprofessionell aus, wie er das so macht, und es bereitet Lust beim Hören und beim Sehen (freudige und freundliche Gesichter); und Rossini lebt und lebt und lebt...Nach knapp drei Stunden ist schon Schluss. Wo war die Zeit geblieben?" - KulturExtra
Brucknerfest Linz, September 2022
"Das Tonkünstler-Orchester zeigte sich unter der Leitung des in zwölfter Stund eingesprungenen, bewundernswerten Jakob Lehmann durchwegs geschmeidig, schwelgerisch, spielfreudig bei diesen Stücken abseits des sattsam bekannten Repertoires." - Die Presse
Thüringer Bachwochen, May 2022
"Weder durchweg modern noch dogmatisch historisch interpretiert Lehmann die barocke Stimmenvielfalt durchweg eindringlich und lässt dabei ausgedehntere Phrasen in ihrer schlichten Schönheit strahlen." - Ostthüringer Zeitung
Teatro Nuovo Festival, New York, Summer 2021
"What struck me most about this Barbiere was its exfoliation of hoary conventions that have accrued over the years to this most popular of comic operas...Jakob Lehmann’s leadership of the performance was most satisfying in the exuberant first-act finale." - Parterre.com
"Lehmann kept everything admirably crisp and jaunty all night long." - Observer
Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Lorraine, Nancy, June 2020
"Devenus quasiment des solistes de musique de chambre, les instrumentistes y démontrent un engagement total et une énergie revigorante sous la baguette attentive de Jakob Lehmann." - ResMusica
Teatro Nuovo Festival, Jakob Lehmann, New York, Summer 2019
"Jakob Lehmann, Teatro Nuovo’s Associate Artistic Director, lead an energetic, driven account of Rossini’s score. The orchestra played with the organic, living-breathing feel of chamber music, with a round, plush sound." - Cadenza.nyc
"Rossini performances have a mixed history in New York City, but Thursday June 27th there was no better place to be than on the Upper East Side, at the Church of the Heavenly Rest...The biggest revelation was the conducting of Jakob Lehmann. Too many performances of Rossini disappoint because of indifferent conducting ( even among established conductors) and his attention to detail and engagement surely inspired the performers, and certainly inspired the audience." - American Rossini Society
"One of the most moving Rossini performances that New York has experienced in recent times" - American Rossini Society
"Teatro Nuovo did not disappoint. Jakob Lehmann’s conducting infused the orchestra with the necessary energy." - Parterre.com
"Under Maestro Lehmann’s direction, Teatro Nuovo’s orchestra gave a solid performance. The orchestra is a period instrument group, and Lehmann knew exactly how to punctuate the Stabat Mater with the tartness that is the hallmark of period instruments. Occasionally, his handling of the strings could be delightfully fragile, such as in the opening when just before the tenor solo, the pizzicato strings sounded like a human heartbeat...Operatic drama was the order of the day." - Operawire
CD review, "SCHUBERT/BERWALD", Alpha Classics, Anima Eterna Brugge, Spring 2019
"Was mir an der Interpretation der Anima Eterna-Musiker besonders gut gefällt: Sie spielen nicht ziseliert, die Details sind nicht gestanzt, oder überbetont. Und, entscheidend für das Klangbild: Das Spiel auf historischen Instrumenten. Das ist kein Hochglanzklang, vereinzelt mag auch mal ein Ton ein wenig herausstechen, dafür können die Instrumente in ihren etwas gedeckteren Farben viel besser verschmelzen." - WDR3
"Das Ergebnis ist ein angenehm schlankes Musizieren, das viele Feinheiten an unser Ohr fördert und das Werk so viel direkter, unmittelbarer erscheinen lässt: mit Crescendi auf engstem Raum und kleinen Hervorhebungen wie Nadelstichen, mal augenzwinkernd, mal aufrüttelnd.
Akzentlustig geht es in allen Sätzen zu, besonders im Scherzo, im Menuett sowie im tänzerischen Finale. Herzstücke aber sind die beiden langen langsamen Abschnitte, getragen und geprägt von Schubert᾽scher Melancholie, die nie plakativ ausgestellt wird, sondern sich in ganzer Natürlichkeit präsentiert. Die Symbiose aus Bläsern und Streichern gelingt in nahezu allen Punkten...Subtiler kann man Schmerz und Humor kaum paaren. Eine Aufnahme, die auch aufgrund ihres direkten und plastischen, nie aggressiven Klangbildes keine Wünsche offenlässt." - FonoForum
"These instruments are wild...string graininess can be spun into sugary sweetness, not least by leader Jakob Lehmann’s application of portamento as an expressive device...If you’re on board with the historical instrument project then the tonal heterogeneity of this ensemble, complete with occasional key noise and bass pizzicatos that slap and buzz against the fingerboard, will have bags of appeal...the steampunk brazenness of this Belgian ensemble is its own advertisement." - Gramphone.co.uk
"Au-delà des notes, des nuances, des couleurs, il y a l’engagement voluptueux des musiciens...Des timbres veloutés, acides, faisant éclore toute la transparence de la musique. Les instruments s’allument et s’éteignent à tour de rôle, comme dans une immense guirlande. Le jeu du premier violon, très viennois, nous rappelle que le style est l’élément fondateur d’une identité...Avec cet enregistrement, Anima Eterna Brugge confirme toute la pertinence de ses choix discographiques." - ResMusica.com
Anima Eterna Brugge, Heidelberger Frühling, March 2019
"Jakob Lehmann entwickelte einen immer durchsichtigen Klang und setzte auf zügige Tempi, mit denen er die stupende Virtuosität und musikantische Spielfreude des Orchesters eindrucksvoll zur Geltung bringen konnte. Darüber hinaus machte er es dem Hörer leicht, die musikalischen Strukturen nachzuvollziehen. So erschien etwa Mendelssohns Verzicht auf Pausen zwischen den vier Sätzen der Schottischen Sinfonie als völlig plausibel. Wir hörten tatsächlich ein in sich geschlossenes Werk."
"Jakob Lehmann developed an always transparent sound and aimed for swift tempi, which which he showcased the stupendous virtuosity and joyful musicianship of the orchestra to great effect. In addition, he made it easy to the listener to understand musical structures. With this, Mendelssohn's relinquishment of breaks between the four movements of the Scottish Symphony seemed completely plausible as we in fact listened to a self contained work." - Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung
Eroica Berlin, Wilhelmshaven, December 2018
"Man wünscht sich, dass „Eroica Berlin“ noch lange bestehen bleibt. Denn so frisch und unkonventionell, wie die durchweg jungen Musiker ans Werk gehen, hat man in den vergangenen Jahren nur wenige Ensembles in Wilhelmshaven erleben dürfen...In Beethovens 3. Sinfonie gibt es Stellen, die einem Zuhörer den Atem stocken lassen. Erstaunlich, wie ambivalent Lehmann den Trauermarsch spielen ließ – als eine Mischung aus Trauer und Siegesgefühl. Beeindruckend die große Transparenz, die spannende Dynamik zwischen extremem Pianissimo und ausgelassenem Fortissimo – und Lehmanns Dirigierstil."
"In Beethovens Third Symphony, some places had the audience gasp for breath. Amazing the ambivalence with which Lehmann directs the Marcia funebre - as a mixture between sorrow and victoriousness. Astonishing is the great transparence, the exciting dynamics between the most extreme pianissimo and exuberant fortissimo - and Lehmann’s conducting style." - Nordwestzeitung
CD review, "SCHUBERT: RELOAD", Ars Vobiscum, Eroica Berlin
"Der Schubert-Sound zerfloss hier nicht im romantischen Raunen, er behielt das Vorwärtsdrängende, den muskulösen Sehnsuchtsdruck, der gelegentlich an eine titanische Spieluhr erinnert."
"The Schubert sound did not deliquescence into romantic whispering, it retained the urge to move forward, the muscular pressure of yearning, which sometimes reminded of a titanic musical clock." - Review of 'SCHUBERT: RELOAD', Ars Vobiscum, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Gustav Seibt
CD review, "MENDELSSOHN: IN TIME", Alpha Classics, Anima Eterna Brugge, Summer 2018
"This coupling...is something of a revelation...the very opening of the work already comes as a shock, not only in the impetuous speed with which Jakob Lehmann launches the Bruges based period instrument orchestra Anima Eterna, but in the vibratoless shaping of the opening melody with many a sliding portamento." - BBC Music Magazine
"A vividly enjoyable presentation" - Gramophone.co.uk
"The sheer youthful energy of both performances is reason enough to give this album a whirl." - Presto Classical
"Rasch zieht dieser Mendelssohn vorbei. Erfrischend wie ein kühler, in Form gebrachter Lufthauch klingt das Violinkonzert... Das Oktett, es spielen Musiker des Anima Eterna Brügge, klingt trocken, griffig und rockt an den richtigen Stellen, wie zum Beispiel im Scherzo. Dabei immer luzide, nie verstopft ein zu fetter Klang diese Mendelssohn-Aufnahme." - Takt1 Magazin
"Herausgekommen ist dabei jedoch kein vorsichtiges akademisches Abwägen, sondern eine ebenso glutvolle wie sensible Deutung des Werkes... Jakob Lehmann leitet das ... Orchester dazu unaufgeregt und ohne Imponiergehabe. Den Musikern gelang es, das Ungebändigte .... wunderbar zu vermitteln, ohne in extreme Tempi zu verfallen... Dies sind zwar nicht die ersten Aufnahmen der beiden bekannten Werke auf historischen Instrumenten, doch in der faszinierenden Kombination und mit diesen Fassungen ist das Projekt bislang einzigartig. Die beiden Vertreter der "nächsten Generation" von Anima Eterna, Chouchane Siranossian und Jakob Lehmann, haben sich nachdrücklich in Stellung gebracht." - Kulturradio vom RBB
"Wunderschön kantabel ist der langsame Satz, von erfrischender Leichtigkeit das Finale, in dem Jakob Lehmann auch das Orchester zu einem sehr eloquenten Spiel mit viel musikantischer Unmittelbarkeit inspiriert." - Pizzicato.lu
"Ihr zur Seite steht Jakob Lehmann, der das Konzert umsichtig und präzise dirigiert... Intensität, aber nie überbordendes Temperament spricht aus diesen Interpretationen... Zurück zu den Wurzeln war die Devise, was auch am transparenten Ensembleklang und dem uneitlen, sehr natürlichen Gestalten hörbar wird... Ein Lob an Jakob Lehmann und Chouchane Siranossian, die das Anima Eterna bereichern." - NDR.de
Concert, Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra, Jakob Lehmann, conductor, Sydney/Melbourne, May 2017
"The unfortunate last-minute indisposition of Richard Gill meant that Jakob Lehmann, concertmaster with the wonderful Anima Eterna Brugge, was promoted from guest leader to maestro at the shortest of notice. The audience were in good hands, as Lehmann proved to be a talented conductor with a perfect instinct for tempi and a strong sense of the importance of balance and blend. His overtures to Il Barbiere di Siviglia and L’Italiana in Algeri duly sparkled, and he was a sensitive accompanist in the vocal selections as well. (...) Lehmann whipped it along with considerable vigour (...).The Symphony itself received a textbook reading. (...) Lehmann drove it forwards with a great sense of swing particularly telling in the powerful three-four sections. The Adagio alternated between the lilting and the grandly noble, the central outbursts deftly handled." - Limelight Magazine
"We sensed from the start that we were in very capable hands. His (Jakob Lehmanns) passion and leadership shone through navigating the orchestra to its splendid finale. .(..) Kudos to Lehmann for having lead ARCO to such a fine performance. (...) Lehmann alternated with a convincing, firm pace and a good deal of expressive flair, the conflicting emotional outbursts in the two movements were rendered to magnificent effect." Sydney Arts Guide
"As the principal conductor, Richard Gill, was taken ill, Jakob Lehmann took his place. You would not have known that he was new to the role and he took on the position with great energy and enthusiasm." The Plus Ones, Melbourne
"He (Jakob Lehmann) displayed a perfect sense of mood and timing and confident stick work." ArtsHub Australia
"Jakob Lehmann did a fabulous job navigating the orchestra through the tricky orchestral recitatives and inspiring a bold and brilliant engagement with Schubert’s Unfinished." A Cunning Blog, Sydney