The orchestra (Niederbayerische Philharmonie) plays the Christmas concert "Winter Dreams" in the sold-out Stadttheater under the direction of Ektoras Tartanis .The 35-year-old, in tailcoats and a black silk shirt, fascinates both the audience and the orchestra from the very first beat. With smooth movements and convincing body language, Ektoras Tartanis leads the musicians, who follow him in a highly motivated and trusting manner. They seem to have taken him into their hearts already. Under his baton, the music breathes, the transitions and changes in dynamics succeed effortlessly and the tempos are wonderfully serving the music. Rather than grand gestures, a small movement of the head or the shoulder is often enough for Tartanis to communicate and transform the music, somewhat reminiscent of Leonard Bernstein. So the conductor himself is the “winter wonder” that enchants everyone in the room.
The program is cleverly chosen and begins with Arcangelo Corelli's Christmas concert. The alternation of the whole orchestra and orchestral solos in the ripieno and concertino works like a dream, every embellishment fits, and a pleasant tension arises that culminates in the silence after the piece. Baroque music sounds light and fragrant here and is played with warm vibrato. The children's symphony, originally attributed to Josef Haydn, turns out to be a refreshing change with a wide variety of children's toys. The orchestra acts with great enthusiasm and delights in the weird sounds of the Vogelpfeiferl. The performance of the overture to "Hansel and Gretel" at this level makes you want to experience this opera again. It gets serious and melancholic after the break with the 1st symphony by the only 26-year-old Peter Tchaikovsky. The four movements have titles that programmatically depict the longings and hopes in the winter landscape for spring and summer.
Ektoras Tartanis touches with wonderfully romantic gestures, sets exciting breaks and leads absolutely safely through the intricate rhythm of the fugue-like, furious final increase. This successful interpretation shows once again the high quality of the Niederbayerische Philharmonie - such euphony has not been experienced here for a long time. After this great moment in the Passau theater, the new conductor must be called Ektoras Tartanis. An extraordinary concert ends with huge applause and beguiling shouts of bravi.
Carola Baumann-Moritz - Passauer Neue Presse