...outmatched by the chorus and orchestra who, galvanised by conductor Pierre Vallet, consistently grab Verdi’s score by the lapels.

"This is the first time that I will have him as conductor, said Stoyanova. So far I have worked with him as a pianist and I must say that he is exceptional..."

Compared to the latest opera premieres of the LNOBT, this time the orchestra, led by French conductor Pierre Vallet, sounded somewhat aristocratic and didn't overshadow anything at all

The orchestra plays powerfully under Pierre Vallet's conducting,

French conductor Pierre Vallet strongly believes in every sound of every phrase and creates a sensitive conversation between himself and the music

As he did with the opening number, Vallet established a very wide dynamic range early on, allowing for a high ceiling, which the group built to as seamlessly as can be done with such a technically demanding work.

...the orchestra, driven forward with a feverish intensity by Pierre Vallet

“Pierre Vallet, a fine conductor, gives this opera it’s full value...

With a meticulous attention to dynamic shifts and contrasts, guest conductor Pierre Vallet brought the curtain up with a trio of pieces from Berlioz’s “concert opera” The Damnation of Faust. The first selection, Menuet des Follets, got a jolly, balletesque sway balanced by pillowy strings; the second, Ballet des Sylphes, had a nocturnal if not particularly nymphlike sweep; the third, the Rakoczy March (based on the Hungarian national song) broght the boisterously dancing energy back up.

Sunday's guest conductor, Pierre Vallet, owns an impressive résumé from the operatic world, including work with the Met. Appropriately enough, he led off the program with the ebullient and thoroughly enjoyable "Polonaise" from Eugene Onegin, which the orchestra bounced merrily through.

Led by guest conductor Pierre Vallet, the ensemble opened with Englebert Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel Overture: lush, dreamy beauty shifting to brighter and more energetic, with pinpoint French horn flourishes and a bouncy precision.

"...a brilliant performance by a superb cast headed by the Polish tenor Piotr Beczala, the Bulgarian soprano Krassimira Stoyanova, the Uruguayan baritone Erwin Schrott, splendidly supported by the French baritone Ludovic Tézier the French mezzo-soprano Karine Deshayes, and the orchestra and chorus from the Liceu led by Pierre Vallet."