These are some press comments on Henze's "Orpheus" at the Aalto-Theater Essen, September 2001:

The third important say has, instead of Eurydice, Henze's orchestra. It is brilliantly lead by the young Swedish conductor Patrik Ringborg and most justly appears on stage for the final curtain bows.
Henze's "Orpheus" music is opalescent with many colours. It is capable of extraordinary escalation, able to throw every corps de ballet in the air, it is excessively rich in its gestures, suggestive, in its lyrical moments beguilingly dulcet. It is masterly. It doesn't tell the choreography what it wants to hear, but challenges it persistently. It never looses the great breath. It has demands a great deal from itself, but also from the choreography, which occasionally has trouble in keeping up with Henze's musical wealth of ideas:
"Orpheus" is a ballet for listening. Those were since Stravinsky's "Sacre" by no means the worst pieces.
(Berliner Morgenpost, 17.09.2001)

Even more could the "Orpheus" music, played warmly and differentiation by the Essen Philharmonic under Patrik Ringborg, tell about its maker; about the bonds to Stravinsky, the wealth of colours from Henze's adopted country Italy and about his closeness to the audience with the modern, popular mix of styles.
(Westdeutsche Zeitung, 17.09.2001)

Patrik Ringborg lead the Essen Philharmonic securely through the multifaceted score, in which Henze deals with Poliziano und Monteverdi who first set the myth to music as well as with Wagner's Tristan and clearly appears as antipode to Gluck.
(Der Opernfreund, 4.2001)

Under Patrik Ringborg the Essen Philharmonic succeeded in plastically bringing out the differentiated sound.
(Westfälischer Anzeiger, 17.09.2001)

The ballet evening became a triumph for Henze's music. Unto this day it has kept its spell with the contrasting instrumentation, which was eminently confirmed by the Essen Philharmonic under Patrik Ringborg.
(Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, 27.09.2001)

The Essen Philharmonic under Patrik Ringborg as well as the gala cast left nothing to be desired...
(Ruhr-Nachrichten, 18.09.2001)

An evening, during which the Essen Philharmonic under Patrik Ringborg sovereignly mastered the terrific Orpheus score.
(theater pur, 9.2001)

... can celebrate a peak in their performances.
This is equally valid for the Essen Philharmonic, who under Patrik Ringborg lays out the difficult score exquisitely transparent and vibrantly renders excitement to the nothing less than physical music.
(Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, 17.09.2001)

His Orpheus score is glassily beautiful in its incredible wealth of colours and facets and has a hand picked exceptional instrumentation from the tender solo to the dramatic self confident sound event. ... The Essen Philharmonic under Patrik Ringborg performed their important part with dedication, transparency and verve and here it was perceivable, that the music forms a unity with the dance.
(Westfälische Rundschau, 18.09.2001)

(The music) in its reproduction by the Essen Philharmonic under the immensely intense direction by Patrik Ringborg impressed anyway like it did a quarter of a century ago through its explosive vehemence and its soulful lyric - a music with powers to make peace and reconcile people with each other.
(Stuttgarter Zeitung, 17.09.2001)

And it is commendable, in which superior way the music of the Essen Philharmonic under the young conductor Patrik Ringborg was realised - in its special neo-classical atmosphere, its very specific expressiveness, shifting in allusions between the subtlest sensual effect and violent discharges of sound. A first class listening adventure.
(Neue Ruhr Zeitung, 17.09.2001)

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