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A thoughtfully designed and coherent program of French music at David Geffen Hall, is played with mostly exquisite results.

Former Principal Guest Conductor Stéphane Denève leads an electrifying Ein Heldenleben in The Philadelphia Orchestra's Sunday concert.

Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges made up for an uneven first half that jumped from Mozart to Harry Potter.

The Philadelphia Orchestra's principal guest conductor offered a typically diverse program of Stravinsky, Peter Lieberson and Lera Auerbach.

The credits for this new production directed by Olivier Py raised high expectations that were only partially met on opening night.

An orchestral program on the theme of ecstasy, religious and profane, included a piano concerto by James MacMillan along with works by Jennifer Higdon, Debussy, and Scriabin.

Nocturne may not be your dreamlike, moonlit summer night stroll, but quite a grim-visaged journey, threateningly dark with the occasional shaft of light piercing through in powerful, sonorous tutti.

Denève and the Brussels Philharmonic launched into Guillaume Connesson’s Flammenschrift with enough excitement and energy to illuminate the whole city.

Stéphane Denève and the RCO gave a powerful, meticulously prepared performance of Honegger’s dramatic oratorio about Joan of Arc.

Stéphane Denève and Augustin Hadelich each prove themselves to be at the very forefront of performers active today. 

Exuberance and reflection from the Brussels Philharmonic in a celebration of Leonard Bernstein.

Stéphane Denève leads The Philadelphia Orchestra through transcendent Strauss and apocalyptic Ravel.

Jory Vinikour was the soloist for Poulenc’s rarely heard Concert champêtre. A performance of Rachmaninov's Symphony no. 2, in which thrilling excess ruled, completed the program.

James Ehnes, a violinist of remarkable elegance, was outstanding in Prokofiev's First Concerto infusing richness to the long, introspective melodic lines.

An enterprising programme combined a striking WWI commemoration from Mark-Anthony Turnage with sumptuous ballet suites from Prokofiev and Ravel, with Nikolaj Znaider rhapsodic in Bruch.

Twenty-first century Stockholm or fin de siècle Paris? Works by Ravel, Debussy and Schmitt take the audience back to the times of the French avant-garde.

A sadly under-attended concert by Stéphane Denève and the Brussels Philharmonic saw fine technique and a clear appreciation of the final pieces of Rachmaninov and Prokofiev's careers.

In the first and last sections dance themes and virtuosic solo work bustle about, playing with percussive elements and darting  from thought to thought like a child whirling elatedly through a festival

In this all-Prokofiev concert James Ehnes was a refined, precise soloist in the Violin Concerto no. 1.

After showing in 13 theatres around the world, Robert Carsen’s Dialogues des carmélites returns again to Amsterdam, where it was premiered in 1997. Almost 20 years on, its finale remains a shattering theatrical experience.

A thoroughly enjoyable insight from the LA Phil under the baton of Stéphane Denève on the different styles of Bartók and Rachmaninov. 

James MacMillan’s The Death of Oscar receives its American première under Stéphane Denève, while Paul Lewis is the soloist in a thought-provoking account of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto no. 3.

Stéphane Denève’s astute dramatic sensibilityis to the fore in dance-related Prokofiev, Poulenc and Stravinsky in Philadelphia.

There were high peaks and low valleys in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's performance of Berlioz' Symphonie fantastique, Shostakovich's Cello Concert no. 1, and Weber's Ruler of the Spirits overture, with conductor Stéphane Denève.

If there were a Nobel Prize for violin, I would nominate James Ehnes. His playing of Britten’s Violin Concerto with the Toronto Symphony was drenched with emotions – pathos, irony, lamentation, sarcasm, tenderness and bliss – displayed and at the same time bounded by the discipline of his virtuosity, that like a diamond, radiated brilliance without attracting attention to itself.

"Freedom fries": no two words could better summarize the crassness that characterized the early years of the American 21st century.In the wake of disagreement over the Iraq War, American xenophobes sought to eradicate from these shores any vestige of the Tricolour.

In the early years of the 20th century, along the streets of Paris, a society of writers, artists, and musicians—among them Maurice Ravel—known as Les Apaches would exchange the secret greeting devised for members to recognize each other.

In this, the last of his farewell programmes, Stéphane Denève bade au revoir to Edinburgh in front of an audience of the great and the good, containing ambassadors, diplomats and ministers as well as all his Edinburgh fans. There were speeches, presentations and more than a touch of the Hollywood Academy Awards Ceremony. “But what about the music?” I hear you ask.

There's more to music than timing, and there's more to timing than music. Timing – as it affects programming – can be a powerful thing. Context amplifies compositions; anniversaries add resonance; personal connections contribute to emotional effect – such as in this concert, RSNO conductor Stéphane Denève's au revoir to Edinburgh.

You could tell that the audience had high hopes for the evening by the packed-out pre-concert talk. The lion's share of this was devoted to a conversation between William Chandler (associate leader of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra) and a very relaxed Steven Osborne, in which they discussed the programme's two piano concertos - and the relatively rare phenomenon of playing two concertos in

"A composer's music should express the country of his birth.." (Rachmaninov)Had Debussy adhered to his programme partner’s dictum, he might have struggled to write Images (1905-1912).

The final concert of the RSNO’s 2010-11 Usher Hall season was a journey from John Adams’ reflection on the tragedy of 11th September 2001 to Beethoven’s joyful statement of brotherhood in his Symphony No. 9. John Adams’ On the Transmigration of Souls was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic to mark the first anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Clive James – with as much modesty as a self-publicist can pull off – says, "all I can do is turn a phrase until it catches the light." A similar ability enlivens the orchestration of masters such as Ravel and Falla.

Vive la France! Last night’s Philharmonia concert was a very Gallic affair; a celebration of French music conducted by the French conductor Stéphane Denève. Fauré’s Pelléas et Mélisande, Debussy’s La Mer and Ravel’s La Valse were all written between 1898 and 1920. The composers are further linked by friendship and an entanglement à trois: Debussy’s second wife was previously the lover of Fauré.

Estimulante velada en la que se parearon obras de Rachmaninov con repertorio francés contemporáneo y en la que destacó especialmente la interpretación de la pianista Eva Gevorgyan.

Après un concerto très poétique aux côtés de David Kadouch, Stéphane Denève et son Brussels Philharmonic déploient des moyens titanesques (avec notamment une belle octobasse) dans la Symphonie fantastique.

La baguette énergique et nerveuse de Stéphane Denève offre une Symphonie n° 9 de Beethoven percutante et bouillonnante, accompagné du Vlaams Radiokoor en état de grâce.

Stéphane Denève ouvre sa cinquième saison en tant que directeur musical du Brussels Philharmonic avec une exceptionnelle Symphonie n° 5 de Mahler.

Stéphane Denève, à la tête d’un Brussels Philharmonic en belle forme, fait entendre plusieurs facettes du talent de cet artiste protéiforme.

Es passt zusammen: Bratsche und Indianerweihen, Liszt und Saint-Saëns „Orgelsymphonie" mit Stéphane Denève, Leo van Doeselaar und dem Niederländischen Radio Filharmonisch Orkest.

Denève dirigierte das RCO in Amsterdam mit der Uraufführung von Erkki-Sven Tüürs Piccolokonzert. Ravels Konzertsuite Ma Mère l'Oye war zuvor in Schlichtheit und Klangschönheit kaum zu überbieten.

Difficile de reprocher à cette entrée en matière une quelconque prévisibilité. Loin des passages obligés, du « grand » répertoire et des pages viennoises auxquelles s’attelle plus volontiers le Philharmonique en ce mouvementé début de saison, l’ONF se restreint avec ce concert d’ouverture à la musique française.

Ce sont des héros. Des athlètes devant un piano. Impliqués dans une lutte vigoureuse dont l’enjeu est d’être « le meilleur ». Depuis des années, la possibilité de faire concorder l’expérience esthétique, donc hyper-personnelle, de la musique avec l’idée d’un concours fait débat. Plus l’encre coule à ce sujet, moins le public semble s’en soucier.

Dans le tout nouvel Auditorium de Radio France, Stéphane Denève remet la musique au cœur du sujet, dans une sobre Réformation, un amusant Concerto pour deux pianos de Poulenc et une très colorée troisième symphonie de Roussel.

Dem Geiger Nikolaj Znaider und dem SWR Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart gelang mit dem ersten Abonnementkonzert ein fulminanter Auftakt der 54. Konzertsaison der Kunstfreunde im Palatin Wiesloch.