“The English chamber orchestra Academy of St Martin in the Fields, with leader and solo violinist Joshua Bell, played works by Mozart and Beethoven with a kind of quiet excellence that made these familiar works a joy to hear again.”

“The precision of this ensemble was staggering from the first downbeat. They played with a constant, clear, unified sound, with their blend, balance and attacks always in agreement. As impressive as the soloists were, the collective string sound was equally effective. It would have been easy for this level of precision to be antiseptic, but ASMF instills more than enough musicality to bring the work to life…Played as a large piece of chamber music, players rarely looked at their music, opting for eye contact and body language to drive things. It was in this sense this chamber orchestra came alive. They were playing as a band, feeding on each other’s performances, instead of keeping time until the double bar.”

“Renowned for its punctilious and conductor-less performances, the group could have breezed through Felix Mendelssohn’s “Hebrides Overture” on its own. But with Bell’s leading from the concertmaster’s seat, the group embodied the music director’s glowing interpretation in a symbiotic give-and-take…Together, director and orchestra displayed innate synchronicity, including in the jovial Allegro’s meticulous articulations, the Andante’s mystical ease, the third movement’s elegant, lilting melodies and the finale’s impish romp.”

“…the musicians proceeded to play the heck out of a demanding program…extraordinary details of dynamics and tone coloring…The Academy musicians seemed to revel in the notes and they shaped an absorbing, virtuosic performance.”

…a delectable mix of drive and vibrant coloring…an impressive night…”

“…an ensemble of first-rate musicians, technically superb, generously expressive, and obviously enjoying themselves.”

“But it also featured the most passionately intense interpretation of Robert Schumann’s Second Symphony you’re ever likely to experience, a precise and powerful example of Romanticism at its stormiest. My two-hour trip to Winona for this sold-out concert was well worth the drive, for it proved undoubtedly one of Minnesota’s classical music events of the year, or perhaps decade… But the most memorable moments came on the slow movement, one of the most sadly beautiful things Schumann ever wrote, its yearning tone eloquently expressed in exquisite solos from oboist John Roberts, flutist Michael Cox and clarinetist Fiona Cross. While Bell offered some guidance with his bow arm, it was clear that developing this kind of acutely calibrated chemistry in an orchestra is a feat as superhuman as what its leader can do with a violin.”