The reviews coming in from critics have been largely glowing in their praise for the specially-commissioned “modest”-scale work, co-sponsored both in connection with composer Andris Nelsons’ new job on one side of the Atlantic in New England jointly with his soon-to-be-former employer – the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in ‘old’ England.
The piece is scheduled to be heard again in Birmingham on June 17 and 18, 2015 under Nelsons’ farewell musical direction as he transitions now to his full-time duties stateside in Boston.
Geoffrey Wieting of the Boston Musical Intelligencer described Lakes awake at dawn in terms like ‘striking’, ‘lush’, ‘cinematic’, ‘lingering’, and ‘luscious’, while Keith Powers of The Patriot Ledger suggested “The BSO would do well to bring it back in the near future.”
On his part, the Boston Globe’s Jeremy Eichler hailed the “fine performance” and said it “whetted one’s appetite for more exploratory programming of music from Nelsons’s home country and its surroundings.”
Cashman Kerr Prince of Arts Fuse also called for Ešenvalds’ work to be encored in the area, writing: "Beautifully atmospheric and fluid, this tightly organized piece strikes an astute balance between singers and orchestra. Ešenvalds is a major voice, and Lakes Awake at Dawn is a lovely addition to the canon. I hope to hear much more of his music in Boston."
