Press
Jenůfa at English National Opera
“In the pit, Keri-Lynn Wilson led the orchestra in a thrilling reading of the score, sinuous early on, then with bags of energy as the piece developed. It was an interpretation that balanced beauty with drama.”— Bachtrack
“The way in which Wilson prises open Janáček’s orchestration to reveal its detail is utterly admirable.” — The Guardian
“This was brilliantly captured by the Canadian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, whose precise control over pace and volume brought out the best from the ENO Orchestra, with the contributions from the percussion and strings particularly powerful.” — Express UK
“In the warm ambience of the Coliseum, conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson leads a performance that is not so much tensile and detailed Janáček as a stream of rich emotion.” — Financial Times
“Janáček’s punchy orchestration needs exactly the kind of skilful handling it receives under the baton of Keri-Lynn Wilson, who never falters in a reading that combines consistent dynamism with dramatic engagement..” — The Stage UK
“But with the chorus in full cry and with Keri-Lynn Wilson’s sensitive support from the podium.”— I News UK
“Conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson makes a welcome return to ENO, and would be an excellent music director if it were worth the candle. What the orchestral playing occasionally lacks in razor-sharp rhythmic precision it gains in heft, with some grotesque and baleful details I hadn’t noticed before in Janáček’s various score. The timing of the many stretched, intense silences is perfect; in the last, before the unexpected resolution of the opera, you could sense the audience collectively holding its breath.”— The Arts Desk
“Conductor, Keri-Lynn Wilson brings even more edge to what is an intense and moving evening”— Theatre-News
“Happily, in the pit, there is great beauty in the playing of the Orchestra of English National Opera under Keri-Lynn Wilson, who draws out the brightest light and darkest shade in this remarkable, mold-breaking score.”— Culture Whisper
“Keri-Lynn Wilson commands the orchestra with verve.”— Broadway World
“Wilson brought out every nuance of the score, bouncing along with the rhythmic passages, swaying gracefully with the tender sections and jabbing at the discordances when menace was called for…”— Seen and heard international
“Keri-Lynn Wilson’s conducting is superb.”— Opera Online
An Orchestra’s ‘Ode to Joy’ Calls for Ukrainian Freedom
- The New York Times
Photo: Andreas Meichsner for The New York Times
Opéra de Paris debut conducting Cendrillon
“In the pit Keri-Lynn Wilson conducts with great precision and sensitivity this abundant score of which she knows how to highlight all the subtleties. The conductor of Ukrainian origin received a warm welcome from the audience for her debut at the OnP.” — Forum Opéra
“A particular mention to the dynamic and fiery direction of Keri-Lynn Wilson, who perfectly masters the style pastiche of Massenet's score, between the formulas of the 18th century, the sonic enchantments of the fairy tale universe, or even the symbolism pre-Debussy. The conductor leads the opera's sumptuous orchestra, highlighting Massenet's erudite and innovative lexicon, with a keen sense of melodic phrasing that constantly highlights the voices” — Première Loge Opéra
La Matinale France Musique Interview
Jean-Baptiste Urbain talks to conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson about her debut in the pit of the Opéra de Paris, conducting Massenet’s “Cendrillon”.
BBC Newsday Interview
The BBC World News caught up with Keri-Lynn Wilson as she and the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra were departing Amsterdam for Hamburg for the next stop of their 2023 Freedom Tour. In this live interview, she explained their musical mission on behalf of Ukrainian liberty.
NPR Weekend Edition Interview
NPR's Scott Simon talks to conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra about its second international tour.
BBC In Tune program
Keri-Lynn Wilson speaks with Katie Derham on BBC 3’s “In Tune”before the final concert of the 2023 Freedom Tour in London’s Barbican Centre. She is joined by Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra concert master Marko Komonko, who performs works by legendary Ukrainian composer Myroslav Skoryk, including his most famous work, “Melody”.
The Russian Forces are no match for the power of Ukraine’s cultural legacy
- The Globe and Mail
Photo: Yurii Gryaznov
ELBPHILHARMONIE TALK WITH THE UKRAINIAN FREEDOM ORCHESTRA
“Before their second orchestral tour, conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson and violinist Anna Bura will testify to the unbroken will to live in Ukrainian culture.”
Houston Grand Opera debut conducting Salome
“…conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, who leads the orchestra with vivacity and precision, provides plenty of savory moments along the way.” — Houston Chronicle
“Founder of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, she made a potent HGO debut with her aptly high-tensile-strength reading of the score that balanced crisp rhythms and powerhouse sonority with delicacy and lilt in the Dance of the Seven Veils.” — Opera Canada
“Conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson magically conjured beauty from the sordid tale of Richard Strauss’ Salome in Houston, Texas… was in her element. She was doing what I think she does best, paying attention to a wonderful lyrical score, the finer points…” — Reaction
“...magnificent conducting from Canadian maestro Keri-Lynn Wilson who is on intimate terms with Strauss' massively layered score. She paints with exquisite strokes, finding the gossamer brilliance that sweeps between and among the titanic orchestration. The clarity is striking, with crystalline woodwinds and blaring horns, and purring skittering strings. The passion is there in those solid C major passages for Jokanaan, and Strauss' inherent lyricism is wondrously handled throughout. If there's another Strauss on the horizon at the opera, let Wilson conduct it, please.” — Houston Press
"The quality of her work on Thursday spoke for itself. Shostakovich’s huge score surges from brooding quiet to deafening fierceness, and Wilson led the orchestra in those shattering brassy marches without being overbearing, and in the stretches of stunned lyricism while keeping the music taut and tense."
Photo: Evan Zimmerman
Best Classical Music Performances of 2022:
Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a true culture war; Russia is seeking not just land but also the erasure of a nation’s artistic output and history. The brave soldiers fighting against that include the members of this pickup orchestra (which toured this summer under the assured baton of the conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson) and the Odesa Philharmonic, which traveled to Berlin for an inspiring performance in September. Throughout the year, powerful performances of Russian music — like a savagely colorful revival of Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” at the Met this fall, with Wilson on the podium — gave the lie to Putinists’ claim that their country’s culture has been canceled in the West. (Read our review of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra.)
— The New York Times
Ukraine orchestra's leader debuts at Met with Russian opera
"Teatro Colón'': La directora Keri-Lynn Wilson habla de Tosca, de su relación con Netrebko y por qué no se debe castigar a la cultura rusa."
Photo: Ricardo Pristupluk
“Dyrygentka prowadziła zespół swobodnie i precyzyjnie, eksponując unikatowe walory każdego z utworów.”
“The conductor led the ensemble freely and precisely, emphasizing the unique qualities of each piece.”
—Music Movement
Interview on Nacional Clásica
Keri-Lynn Wilson is the guest on “Artista di Moda” on Argentina’s Radio Nacional Clásica. She discusses her debut at Teatro Colon conducting “Tosca,” and much more.
“Wilson sharpened every edge and kept pace with every madcap turn, every catastrophic collision. The off-kilter tilt of the stage found a match in the conductor’s angular management of the orchestra: It was a three-hour thrill ride.”
— The Washington Post
Inside City Hall - NY1
Keri-Lynn Wilson and General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera, Peter Gelb, speak about the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra with host Errol Louis.
“The other important debut was of conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson. One… heard a superb, polished sound from the orchestra. All of Shostakovich’s colors were there, and also his attitude; now tender, now ferocious, now sardonic, now haunting. The energy was focussed and intense…Throughout one heard that Shostakovian emotional edge, just short of brittle disintegration. It was an impressive performance where everything sounded so right and polished that one felt the music all the way through, without be distracted by any idiosyncrasies or questions…This isn’t just a good looking production, it’s one that sees what Shostakovich did and presses it further, and does so with intelligence and fearlessness.”
— New York Classical
Review: A Ukrainian Orchestra Speaks With Quiet Intensity
- The New York Times
Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra review – tears and roars of delight for new national ensemble
Royal Albert Hall, London
Giving only their second ever performance, the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra was highly impressive and deeply moving in a programme of Silvestrov, Chopin, Beethoven and Brahms
‘Channelling our anger’: Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra heads for the Proms
- The Guardian
An Orchestra Supports Ukraine, and Reunites a Couple Parted by War
-The New York Times
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra Tour 2022
Freiheit, schöner Götterfunken
-Der Tagesspiegel
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra: ‘our music is our gun’
-The Times
Opera News - Sight Lines
F. Paul Driscoll speaks with Canadian-Ukrainian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson about the creation of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, making art in times of war and the ensemble's ambitious tour of Europe and the United States this summer.
Keri-Lynn Wilson y su orquesta de reclutas por la paz
‘I just felt I had to do something’: The mission to create an army of Ukrainian musicians
- The Telegraph
Un orchestre de musiciens ukrainiens en tournée cet été
-La Vie
Don’t ask Keri-Lynn Wilson what it feels like to be a woman conductor — ‘I just do what I do’
- Toronto Star
"Keri-Lynn Wilson conducts unfussily but brilliantly, her interpretation thrillingly urgent."
- The Spectator (London)
Women in Power: Кери-Линн Уилсон — первая женщина-дирижер в истории Большого театра
“The Canadian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, making her UK operatic debut and unquestionably one of the stars of the evening, hurled herself and the excellent ENO orchestra into the music while the audience was still reaching for off buttons. It was an arresting start to a compelling evening."
-The Observer (London)
Moscow’s Radio Chanson Feature
Interview with the Sofia Philharmonic
“Dirigentin Keri-Lynn Wilson hielt mit unspektakulärer, klarer Gestik den riesigen Klangapparat jederzeit in kunstvoller Balance. Anhaltende, sehr freundliche Zustimmung aus deutlich reduziertem Publikum. Viele Hindemith-Skeptiker ließen sich ein großartiges Konzert entgehen.”
[With unspectacular, clear gestures, conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson kept the huge sound apparatus in artistic balance at all times. Persistent, very friendly approval from a significantly reduced audience. Many Hindemith skeptics missed out on a great concert.]
— Volksblatt
Entwicklung als Musikerin und Mensch – Interview mit der Dirigentin Keri-Lynn Wilson
“Dass dies so wunderbar gelingt, ist der Dirigentin Keri-Lynn Wilson zu verdanken. Die Kanadierin, die schon mit vielen großen Orchestern gearbeitet hat, agiert mit empathischer Zurückhaltung. Beim Konzert ebenso wie beim Schlussapplaus, den sie praktisch jedem einzelnen der knapp 200 Mitwirkenden angedeihen ließ.”
[We have the conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson to thank for the fact that this succeeds so wonderfully. The Canadian, who has worked with many large orchestras, acts with empathetic restraint. During the concert as well as at the final applause, she devoted herself to nearly every one of the almost 200 musicians.]
— OÖNachrichten
Orfeo Radio Interview
Interview with Moscow’s Orfeo Radio in March 2021, when Keri-Lynn Wilson was at the Bolshoi to conduct “Un Ballo in Maschera.”
Behind-the-Scenes at the Bulgaria Concert Hall
“Keri-Lynn Wilson legte großen Wert auf schöne Legatobögen, auf genaue Phrasierung, ohne auf Überakzentuierungen zu setzen.”
[Keri-Lynn Wilson attached great importance to beautiful legato slurs, precise phrasing without over-accentuation.]
— Online Merker, Karl Masek
France Info Interview
Classic Talk
Bing and Dennis speak with Ms. Wilson.
“A l’accompagnement, la baguette de la cheffe Keri-Lynn Wilson s’emploie superbement à diriger un Münchner Rundfunkorchester tout en retenue et en musicalité exacerbée.”
{"With the accompaniment, the baton of the conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson does a superb job of directing a Münchner Rundfunkorchester with restraint and intense musicality."}
- Resmusica, Jacques Schmitt
"Operaorkesteret spiller for livet under Keri-Lynn Wilson og åpner døren på gløtt for fargene som ligger i Verdis partitur."
["The Opera Orchestra is full of life under Keri-Lynn Wilson and allows for the colors that lie in Verdi's score to come to alive."]
- Aftenposten, Maren Ørstavik
Q & A: Keri-Lynn Wilson on ‘Inspired by,’ Repertoire & Wagner
"
In un mondo ancora quasi esclusivamente maschile, la Canadese Keri-Lynn Wilson si è aperta un varco e ieri sera si è definitivamente laureata come grande interprete Pucciniani."
- Il Corriere
"The production's success is sealed by the engagement of the Canadian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, who evidently loves Puccini's translucent score, revelling in its folksy Americanisms and sophisticated homages to Debussy. She conveys her enthusiasm to an ENO orchestra on top form, and to the ever excellent chorus."
- The Sunday Times (London)
Nobilis Magazine Feature:
"Under dirigent Keri-Lynn Wilson varierer orkesteret klangfarger, dynamikk og ikke minst tempo. Hun får fram masse persontegning, doble bunner og ironi i Verdis musikk som underbygger de flertydige karakterene. Musikken er presis, men aldri kjedelig og åpner rom der hver enkelt sanger og musiker kan frasere."
{"Under the conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, the orchestra varies in tone colors, dynamics and, not least, tempo. She brings out a lot of personal expression, double meanings and irony in Verdi's music that underpins the ambiguous characters. The music is precise, but never dull, and opens spaces where every single singer and musician is given artistic freedom."}
—
- Dagsavisen, Hild Borchgrevink
“Barrie Kosky’s production of Carmen is back at the Royal Opera House… This time, under the brisk baton of Keri-Lynn Wilson making her ROH debut, sharpened, tightened, the evening flew.”
-The Observer (UK), Fiona Maddocks
“Revival direction by Alan Barnes and Madeline Ferricks-Rosevar with conducting by Keri-Lynn Wilson gives the whole thing wonderful smack and tickle. Dance is at its core, and it’s done brilliantly.”
-The Independent (UK)Michael Church
“Keri-Lynn Wilson bringt am Pult die einzigartige Partitur zu beredtem Singen und Klingen. Es gelingen ihr schön aufbereitete Details und Spannende."
{“Keri-Lynn Wilson makes the unique score sing and ring on the podium. She manages beautifully prepared details and excitement. "}
-Merker, Friedeon Rosen
“Under Keri-Lynn Wilson’s direction, the chorus and orchestra were superb.”
-The Independent, London
Michael Church
“Keri-Lynn Wilson got a rapturous cheer before she had so much as twitched her baton on the first night of Aida – partly because it is still a rarity to see a woman lead an orchestra. But that pleasure aside, she can be cheered for all the right reasons too: she leads the first-rate orchestra with verve.”
-The Guardian (UK)
"Was macht man mit einer Oper, die gefühlt tausendmal gehört ist? Man spielt sie so, dass es klingt, als würde man die Musik zum ersten Mal hören. So geschehen in der Bayerischen Staatsoper unter der musikalischen Leitung von Keri-Lynn Wilson."
[What can you do with an opera, that feels like you've heard it a thousand times? You have to play it as if you hear the music for the first time. That's what happened at the Bayerische Staatsoper under the musical direction of Keri-Lynn Wilson.]"
-Klassik Begeistert
Barbara Hauter
(Photo courtesy of the Royal Opera House/ Bill Cooper)
"Sie ist eine Powerfrau, ganz gewiss. Keri-Lynn Wilson, zu Gast in der Tonhalle...das Konzert zeigte, was Wilson kann. Und das war sehr viel. Sie dirigierte für die Kunst, nicht für die Galerie. So konnte Wilson unmissverständliche Impulse setzen, die von den Symphonikern unmittelbar aufgegriffen wurden, könnte Linien formen, die zu wunderschönen Soli führten. Der Symphonie ließ sie Zeit zum Schwingen, Zeit zum Aufbau gewaltiger Steigerungen. Das war auf gewisse Weise große Oper."
{She is a power woman, certainly. The concert showed what Wilson can do. And that was a lot. She conducted for art, not for show. Wilson gave clear impulses that were immediately followed by the symphony players, forming lines and beautifully lead solos. The symphony left space for the music to ring, [and] time to build tremendous musical moments. This made it great opera.}
-RP Düsseldorf
"Dans la fosse, Keri-Lynn Wilson confirme l'excellente impression qu'elle avait laissé dans "La Fanciulla del West" (2008) et "Le Vaisseau Fantôme" (2012), en dirigeant l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal avec un souci constant de la tension dramatique et de la splendeur orchestrale."
{"In the pit, Keri-Lynn Wilson confirms the excellent impression she had left in " La Fanciulla del West "(2008) and " Le Vaisseau Fantôme "(2012), with a constant concern for conducting the Montreal Symphony Orchestra with dramatic tension and orchestral splendor. "}
-L'Avant-Scène Opéra (Montreal)