Oui chef ! (sic)
“The role of the conductor in opera is often considered negligible and many imagine that good musicians and a solid vocal cast are perfectly capable of successfully carrying out a lyrical performance.
The presence of Sergio Alapont at the Opéra-Théâtre de Metz puts an end to this simplistic reasoning and demonstrates – if it were really necessary – all the added value that a conductor possessed by music can bring to the show. In dramatic contrast to the terrifying measures that open the score of Tosca, the first thunderous chords of La Rondine burst from the pit in luminous splashes and immediately assert the demiurgic personality of a very great conductor.
With his ample gestures and precise baton, Sergio Alapont has managed to give the forces of the Orchestre national de Metz Grand Est a Viennese sound of good quality that is ideally suited to this very classy operetta. Rarely will the musicians of Metz play in such a fusional manner: the string sections rustle with the shine of satin, the brass is gleaming in each of their interventions and, above all, the direction of the Spanish conductor holds the orchestra together and raises it well beyond its usual level.”
The finale of the second act, “Bevo al tuo fresco sorriso,” is a model of its kind. Without haste or grandiloquence, Sergio Alapont constructs a musical kaleidoscope whose layers overlap until they culminate in three fermatas that the conductor marks a tempo, provoking eruptive hysteria among the audience and “Bis! Bis!” that unfortunately fell on deaf ears.
At the final curtain, the Metz audience – a large part of whom, no doubt, were discovering La Rondine on stage – enthusiastically greeted this wise and well-sung production, reserving a particularly warm welcome for the Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont, whom we would like to hear again very soon in a work by Richard Strauss.”
Nicolas Le Clerre – Première Loge
“The greatest asset of this performance was the orchestra, which, under the direction of Italian conductor Sergio Alapont, blended Viennese colors with the fluidity of the Italian orchestra for very pleasing pastels. It goes without saying that the Metz Opera Theatre orchestra, with only 66 musicians, works on a reduced scale. Some of the instrumentalists, such as the harpist and the xylophonist, have even been installed in the side boxes around the orchestra pit. The success of the particularly smooth, charming and seamless conducting was therefore all the more appreciable.”
Rey Andreas – OPERAWIRE
“Sergio Alapont’s musical direction is prodigiously effective, demonstrating fine craftsmanship and a palpable love for the work. The opening bars are as grand as expected, as is the entire Act II, which shines brightly. The conductor lets the work breathe, allowing itself to make sense. The silences and slowdowns are moving. You can count on the Orchestre National de Metz Grand Est, which produces a tangible, high-quality sound throughout the opera, reflecting a meticulous interpretation.”
Tancrède Lahary – Forum Oper
“The Orchestre National de Metz Grand Est, deployed in the pit (requiring the Puccini format), is solidly prepared and conducted by Sergio Alapont. He knows how to alternate, in this continuous flow, the light moments of the salon and the Bullier Ball with the intimate moments and lyrical outbursts of passion that overwhelm the characters. His sense of transitions and contrasts offers a very effective dynamic and supports strings full of colour.”
Joël Heuillon – Olyrix – Opera Magazine
“Another joy of this production is the performance of the Orchestre National de Metz Grand Est, which, under the baton of Sergio Alapont, was able to find all the modernist colours of a score that is traditional and classical in some respects, avant-garde and forward-looking in many others.”
Pierre Degott – Resmusica Magazine
“Maestro Sergio Alapont’s musical direction maintained a perfect balance between the light lyricism and the deeper pathos that Puccini so skillfully wove. The orchestra highlighted the delicacy of La Rondine’s musical writing, particularly in the moments where the intensity gradually increases, preparing us for a finale full of emotion and poignancy.”
Giovanni Zambito – Fatti Italiani
“The Orchestre National de Metz Grand Est is conducted by Sergio Alapont, with ample gesture. The ensemble sounds brilliantly, offering beautiful phrasings and great narrative power.”
Damien Dutilleul – Klassykeo
“Magnificent was the work of Sergio Alapont from Castellón at the baton, demonstrating why he is increasingly required in theaters around the world in works that are also as committed as this one, with which he knew how to display his usual passion and skill, working hard on the coordination with the voices, without overshadowing them but maintaining at all times an important presence of the instrumental grammar. Especially moving was the work of the cellos in Zacarías’ prayer, enhancing the mystical and spiritual air of the scene. The Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla followed the instructions from the conductor accurately, standing out both in the most furious passages and in the most lyrical and delicate ones.”
Juan José Roldán – El Correo de Andalucía
“Sergio Alapont carried this volcanic score with firmness but also with control that if it is not let go it gets out of hand. In the overture he privileged solemnity over the discharge of force. He marked the tempos with energy when necessary, but also he made the orchestra sing in the most lyrical moments, always establishing a good balance of dynamics with respect to the voices.”
Andrés Moreno Mengíbar – Diario de Sevilla
“Sergio Alapont convinced in the pit. The Castellón maestro tuned in to the internal rhythm of the work, to which he gave liveliness and dynamism, always seeking a lively and vibrant tempo and a compact and balanced sound. Alapont also showed himself to be a good maestro concertatore, attentive to the voices at all times, attentive to their input and equally involved and eager with the choir, to whom he sought to give confidence and security in their interventions at the hall”
Alejandro Martínez – Platea Magazine
“For that nerve, that youthful radiance, those melodies so direct to reach the listener, a knowledgeable and determined, direct and precise baton is needed, servant of what is preponderant in Verdi’s writing: the so characteristic tempo-rhythm that sustains without faltering the sound building; in a single stroke, we believe that this mandate could be fulfilled thanks to the good work of Sergio Alapont, with a lively and expressive baton, with very fair dynamic approaches. His reading was passionate and defining of the youthful and fiery style of the work. Busseto and adequately controlled the elements in contention, something not easy taking into account the scenic approaches”
Arturo Reverter – Beckmesser – La Razón
“Musically, the representation was above the staging. The Spanish Sergio Alapont conducted the Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla with liveliness and dynamism; He marked the tempi with determination, but also breathed lyricism into the required moments. In general, the second part sounded more Verdi than the first, since many of the visual effects had already lost their impact, and the viewer’s attention could be focused on the music.”
Jacobo Cortines – Scherzo
“In the pit the Seville Symphony showed once again its good ability to not do its own thing and to follow the instructions of the maestro in front of him, in this case Sergio Alapont (see interview at this link. His work as maestro concertatore was exemplary, without covering up the voices and enhancing the instrumental sections, with the added difficulty of having the choir and soloists in many of them. moments spread across the stage and the seating area.”
Ismael G. CABRAL, correspondent in Seville for ÓPERA ACTUAL
“Singers and Chorus accompanied by an orchestra that one forgets about because of how good it sounds under the direction of musical director Sergio Alapont. Giving the production the joy and lightness of bel canto despite the topic it deals with. An orchestra that does not demand attention above all else, but rather hybridizes with the rest of the show, in a way that makes it difficult to separate them to analyze them.”
Antonio Hernández Nieto – SULPONTICELLO
“Musical director Sergio Alapont manages to unify singing and music, theatricality, and establish a delicate balance with the stage with the essential company of a dedicated ROSS. Always attentive to the total sound, giving equality and justice to the parts at play.”
LA Alicia Perris – OperaClick
“Thank God, musically it was another quality. Magnificent the Real Orqyesta Sinfónica de Sevilla as always, with a conductor Sergio Alapont delving into the dramatic moments, resounding, energetic, and delicate in the most intimate scenes. Accompanying the singers and the choir with care, in this score full of melodies.”
LA PRIMA DEL PALCO
“La dirección de Sergio Alapont fue briosa, muy gestual, con obtención de óptimos resultados. Imprimió unos tempi vertiginosos, muy acordes con su gestual brío, que pusieron a prueba tanto a la orquesta como al coro. Ante el célere reto lanzado por Alapont, los maestros de la orquesta y del coro respondieron con un virtuosismo y una factura musical sencillamente genial: una orquesta sólidamente conjuntada, un coro potente y sonoro y unos solistas que demostraron con creces su asombrosa maestría.”
Michael Thallium – Scherzo Magazine
“Finally – and absolutely crucially – Sergio Alapont held everything together in the pit, conducting the orchestra with terrific panache. He eked out every ounce of heart-throbbing passion and rich tonal colours from those romantic swells that punctuate Puccini’s score, although never once did they overpower the singers in this scintillating performance.”
Andrew Larkin – BACHTRACK
“Sergio Alapont’s flawless conducting. Indeed, rarely has Puccini looked or sounded better.”
“Alapont’s conducting of the Irish National Opera Orchestra releasing La Bohème full emotional richness. Especially during the final, heart wrenching act during which, even the silence sings.”
Chris O’Rourke – The Arts Review
“And you realise that Puccini, under the insightful stewardship of the conductor Sergio Alapont and the INO Orchestra, has been carefully manipulating you towards the emotional darkness of this final moment all along.“
Michael Dungan – The Irish Times
“Conductor Sergio Alapont brings a terrific boisterous energy to these comic elements.”
Katy Hayes – Irish Independent
“Because of that, the orchestra must be a star, doing the work of creating momentum; here, under conductor Sergio Alapont, it very much is. The best moments are the forte playing as it intertwines with, carries, and embellishes the emotional heights of the singing to express all the tangled tumult and confusion of love, desire, and loss. It’s impossible not to be swept along by the familiar big hitters.”
Alan O’Riordan – Irish Examiner
“The music for Puccini’s heart-stopping arias is all-important and Spanish maestro Sergio Alapont and the INO Orchestra handled the sweeping moods in masterly fashion.”
Dick O’Riordan – BUSINESS POST
The Irish National Opera Orchestra under the baton of Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont was lush and evocative, enhancing the emotional impact of the story.
Gearoid O’Byrne – No More Workhorse
“Anche l’orchestra ha saputo esprimere la violenza, la ferocia, il terrore, la follia che serpeggiano, come anche l’entusiasmo dei banchetti o l’impegno della battaglia. Tutto ciò è avvenuto grazie alla direzione appassionata di Sergio Alapont, il quale, oltre a restare fedele a quanto riportato in partitura, ha sempre tenuto le redini dello spettacolo. Alapont ha sempre mantenuto il contatto con coro, orchestra e solisti, respirava con i cantanti, garantendo coesione e unità alla messa in scena.”
Federica Faldetta – Operaclick
“Por último, hay que reseñar que la Dirección musical a cargo de Sergio Alapont dirigiendo a la OSCyL de manera sólida y profesional ha sido acertada desde el comienzo hasta el final. En un palmo de terreno ha construido un territorio sonoro inmenso.”
Ágreda L.M. – Tribuna de Valladolid
“If there’s a star here, it’s conductor Sergio Alapont, leading the Irish National Opera Orchestra. He faced a number of pandemic-era challenges in this 2021 concert performance at Ireland’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, working with masked players and singers except when singing, a spaced-out choir and orchestra, and everyone socially distanced. Despite these restrictions, Alapont keeps the music moving forward with febrile energy. The opera as a whole comes in several minutes faster than average, and Alapont manipulates the tempo at many points in intensely dramatic readings. Pick this one. Signum Classics delivers excellent live sound.”
Puccini – La Bohème Review by James Manheim – AllMusic
“Sotto l’aspetto musicale vanno fatti i complimenti a Sergio Alapont per aver offerto una versione integrale e filologica della partitura mozartiana. Il direttore spagnolo ha diretto con mano sicura ponendo la giusta attenzione alle esigenze dei cantanti: lo stacco dei tempi, anche nei momenti più brillanti, ha sempre tenuto conto delle loro esigenze di respirazione. I volumi orchestrali non sono mai stati prevaricanti e i colori tendenzialmente brillanti sono stati variati anche grazie all’uso di belle e ampie dinamiche. Nel complesso buona la prova di Orchestra e Coro dell’Ente.”
Danilo Boaretto – OperaClick
“L’immortale musica di Mozart ha affascinato ancora una volta il pubblico grazie al lavoro del direttore Sergio Alapont, per l’ottava volta al Comunale – fu lui ad inaugurare il nuovo teatro nel 2010 – che ha guidato l’Orchestra dell’Ente lungo una partitura complessa ed insidiosa.”
Giampaolo Cirronis – Sardegna Ieri Oggi Domani
“Merito non solo delle scelte che ne condizionano la formazione ma – ovviamente – dell’accurato lavoro di concertazione di Sergio Alapont. Il direttore ha regalato al pubblico una visione nitidissima della Pastorale, caratterizzata da una morbidezza di suono e da una grande cura per il dettaglio, mentre nel Concerto di Brahms ha approfondito il respiro sinfonico dell’opera, riuscendo ad equilibrare la monumentalità di alcuni momenti con la semplicità e l’intimismo di altri nei quali emerge la quintessenza del lirismo brahmsiano.”
Antonio Ligios – La Nuova Sardegna
“Sergio Alapont, ya había dirigido a la Orquesta titular del Teatro Real en un par de galas líricas, pero no en un título operístico. Se trataba, pues, de su debut en la casa en este género, y no defraudó. En sus manos la orquesta sonó bien empastada, con autoridad y sensibilidad. Alapont encontró el difícil equilibrio entre tensión dramática y lirismo que requiere esta partitura verdiana, respetando los tempi indicados por el compositor sin menoscabo para los cantantes. La música del joven Verdi fue la protagonista indiscutible de la noche, dando vuelo a los solistas.
Majo Perez – Opera World
El español Sergio Alapont subía por primera vez al foso madrileño para dirigir una ópera, y aportó energía desde las primeras notas, fiel a la partitura de Verdi, acompañó con excelencia las voces.
Rocío García Alonso – ÓPERA ACTUAL
“L’ottima orchestra affidata per tre recite al Maestro valenciano Sergio Alapont, il quale così debutta in un’opera al Real dopo avervi diretto diversi concerti: polso e gesto energico e sicuro, supporto ideale per il palcoscenico. Una lettura che è stata molto apprezzata dal numeroso pubblico che assiepava il teatro, dove non ci sono stati cedimenti nel ritmo narrativo, caratterizzata dallo spirito quarantottesco e battagliero che anima diverse pagine, ma anche delicata negli a solo, esempio il violoncello di “Vieni o levita”, e di grande tensione lirica nei momenti di abbandono, riferiti all’adagio di Abigaille e poi alla grande aria “Dio di Giuda”, dove si è raggiunta un’emozione palpabile e si è reso al massimo il senso della preghiera.”
Andrea Merli – L’Opera – International Magazine
“Musicalement parlant, la partition de Donizetti est aussi succulente dans l’émotion et l’humour. D’autant plus que Sergio Alapont qui a fait vivre l’expressivité dans ses nuances.”
Safi Yosr – Le Musicien
“Conducted by Sergio Alapont, of whom the least splendid thing we can say is that it is a spectacle to see him with the baton in his hand.”
“Beethoven was responsible for welcoming the crowd that filled the venue and with which the conductor displayed an energy that would surely have excited the genius of Bonn.”
“Powerful initial chords set the bar of intensities where it belonged and the orchestra was in full shape to face a Mozart in which, if with Beethoven Alapont’s fists gave the piece a powerful and energetic plus, it was enough with the two index fingers to drive the situation.”
“The second part of the concert was for Antonin Dvorák’s Symphony No. 8 in G major, op. 88. Alapont gradually brought out all the nuances to the composition and the orchestra answered exceptionally. Circumstance which caused that just finished the symphony and because of the warm applause, the conductor decided to offer an unusual encore. He did it with the final coda of the eighth and major finale, both in the courtyard and on the stage, while Alapont embraced Miralles first, for his flute solo, and then with almost everyone he met. Joy that is entrusted, and the audience enthusiastic.”
J.A. Mendiola – ARABALEARS
“It’s Sergio Alapont in the pit who really makes the difference, subtly stretching Puccini’s tempos for maximum dramatic effect, finding orchestral details in a familiar score that you had forgotten, or never properly heard, and above all letting his singers lead.”
Michael Beek Reviews Editor, BBC Music Magazine
“Sergio Alapont always catches all the intricacies of La bohème’s score”
Giuseppe Pennisi – Classical Music Daily
“Sergio Alapont’s tempo is perfect, bright, breezy…This recording has one of the finest third acts I have heard, brilliantly sculpted by Alapont to include moments of held-breath emotion…”
“The recording is spectacular. Not in a glitzy, bright, digital way, more in its sonic honesty. We hear everything, and in beautiful perspective: try the offstage chorus and its approach in act II (in this performance Alapont ensures we hear this as one of the more modernist moments of the opera with an almost Ivesian layering of on-stage and off-stage elements. Part of this mastery of Puccini’s techniques is an awareness of gesture from Alapont: the sudden two-chord opening of the third act a case in point, and the way the excellent Orchestra of Irish National Opera conjures up the frozen atmosphere is testament to his conducting. Alapont, too, has a feeling for the perfect tempo, and it is precsiely this that allows his third act to be so successful, Melodies stretch beautifully but the underlying pulse remains intact.”
“Orchestral textures are clear, and often, when appropriate, luminous. But how Alapont sculpts the change of mood in the final act (the passage between “Gavotta” and Schaunard’s Coat Aria)…”
Colin Clarke, Classical Explorer
Conductor Sergio Alapont really makes the most of the impressionistic opening to the third act, transparent and atmospheric. One can really imagine the snow falling.
Göran Forsling, MusicWeb International
“…grazie soprattutto alla verve impressa alla musica dalla direzione di SERGIO ALAPONT, vera nota positiva della produzione. Il direttore spagnolo ha confermato nell’occasione le sue doti di controllo della flessibilità agogica, d’espressione e di gusto nel fraseggio, conducendo con leggerezza e vivacità un insieme che non scade mai in eccessi o nel cattivo gusto, sempre in agguato in un simile repertorio.”
Gabriele Verdinelli, GBOPERA
“Ottima la direzione di SERGIO ALAPONT, tesa a valorizzare le finezze di una partitura fresca e dal gusto tipicamente viennese, e a conferire il giusto ritmo alla rappresentazione.”
Antonio Ligios, La Nuova Sardegna
“Sul podio il Maestro Sergio Alapont, un Direttore brillante capace di lavorare in totale sinergia con i cantanti.”
Loredana Atzei, I Teatri dell’EST
“Sergio Alapont kept a tight grip on the orchestra and chorus and accompanied the singers beautifully. He maintained an excellent balance of sound between the singers and the orchestra which was impressive given that the players were on the main stage. Some of instrumental entries were very good indeed including a few from the leader. Alapont brought a lightness and transparency to the comic scenes and a romantic richness of texture to the great love scenes.”
Robert Beattie, Seen and Heard International
“Conducting with rigour and delicacy, Sergio Alapont marshals INO’s Orchestra with aplomb, with each giving an invested and exquisite performance. If the conversational, call and response structure of Puccini’s singing favours duet and ensemble, (with INO making surprisingly effective use of off stage singing) it draws greater attention to those individual moments when singers get to shine. Tilt the balance fractionally and solos can stick out like a sentimental sore thumb. Yet get it right, and they resemble jewels resting on musical velvet. From soloists to ensemble, to the chorus placed strategically throughout the COVID conscious auditorium, INO get it right with uncanny consistency.”
Chris O’Rourke – The Arts Review
“Il maestro Sergio Alapont, ne ricordiamo l’ottima prestazione in Nozze di Figaro di Mozart, ha diretto con bel piglio e commisurata energia”
Carmelita Celi – La Sicilia
“The direction of Maestro Sergio Alapont is, for its part, torrential, without however losing the dreamy inspiration necessary for the surrender of some moments: it seemed to us amazing on Ravel”
William G. Costabile Cisco – GB Opera
“It was a challenge to transform a winter night in Belfast to a Viennese extravaganza of music by the Strauss family and others, but the orchestra, under charismatic Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont (first time in Belfast) managed to achieve this with aplomb.”
Alf McCreary – Belfast Telegraph
“Ciò è stato colto assolutamente nella bella e brillante direzione di Sergio Alapont che ha fatto sprigionare come da una scatola magica il gioco dei timbri, gli effetti strumentali e il dominio dell’orchestrazione del geniale compositore. In più ha sostenuto abilmente le ragioni del canto qui, come poi nello scatenato Gianni Schicchi nel secondo tempo, ben assecondato dall‘Orchestra dei Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano”
Andrea Merli – I Teatri dell’Est
“The conductor, Sergio Alapont, who has just directed “L’Héure Espagnole” of Ravel at the Fraschini Theater in Pavia (precisely set in a watchmaking in the city of Toledo), raised a serious and effective work, with an intelligent interpretive approach. The conductor from Benicàssim knew how to perfectly convey his criteria to a young and prepared orchestra, which was delivered one hundred percent in a concert that lasted only fifty minutes: Less is more.”
Juan José Montero Ruiz – La Tribuna de Toledo
“Sul podio, Sergio Alapont ha incarnato lo spirito umoristico e sensuale ma anche fantastico, trasognato, carico di realismo e al contempo surreale di Ravel, il quale indulge a citazioni e inserisce a piene mani suoni e rumori. L’opera di Puccini invece abbina elementi ironici ad altri grotteschi e il direttore si è soffermato su una lettura musicale sensibile alla tragicità di fondo dei rapporti umani, con appropriati slanci poetici e le indispensabili aperture scherzose.”
Maria Luisa Abate – DeArtes
“Grande soirée al teatro Fraschini di Pavia, venerdì, per l’apertura della nuova stagione “Oltre lo sguardo”. Il maestro concertatore spagnolo Sergio Alapont ha diretto magistralmente l’orchestra de I Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano sulle note del dittico “L’heure espagnole” di Maurice Ravel e “Gianni Schicchi” di Giacomo Puccini”
La Provincia Pavese
On the podium of the Pomeriggi Musicali orchestra of Milan, Sergio Alapont enters deep into the two scores, above all trying to emphasise their modernity. With Ravel the attention is above all for the instrumental, with liquid and soft sounds alternating with vigorous dynamic spikes, in an amalgam from which the single instruments often emerge with incisiveness. In Puccini, the narrative tension is constant, the pace is quick, without compromising a generally wit and sensitive singing phrasing.
Fabio Larovere – Corriere della Sera – Connessi all’Opera
On the podium of the Orchestra dei Pomeriggi Musicali was the Spanish director Sergio Alapont, able to highlight the narrative tensions and the particular dynamics present in the two complex scores presented.
Davide Marchetti – The Blog Art Post
Sergio Alapont, conducting the Orchestra I Pomeriggi Musicali, gave a refined reading of the ravelian score.
Luigi Fertonani – Brescia Today
“…l’orchestre brillait de mille feux sous la baguette acérée et nuancée du jeune chef espagnol Sergio Alapont. Celui-ci a abordé ensuite avec toute la verve et l’élégance requises la symphonie en Ut composée par Bizet”
Le Telegramme
“To the talent of the well-known duo Torres-Delicado was joined by the willing concerting profession of the Castellón maestro Sergio Alapont and an involved Valencia Orchestra”
“Tribute and program were closed with an impulsive version of the 1919 suite of Stravinski’s The Firebird, in which Alapont, master of active international career, extreme dynamics, accents and expression.”
“The persistent rhythm of the ominous serious chords of the two pianos, which closed the work, away from the baroque attitude of Ricercare, but not of its fundamental purpose of obsessive search in a free form was very significant. Therein lay the revelation of the piece and Alapont knew how to find it. “
Justo Romero – Diario Levante EMV
The concert ended with a contrasted, vehement and sensory version of the 1919 Suite of “The Firebird” by Stravinski. The fantastic and mysterious initial atmosphere gave way to the bird’s persistent flutters at a disturbing danceable rhythm. The “Round of the princesses” offered a suggestive presence of cellos and woodwinds and then the rest of the strings, where environmentality and contrasts prevailed. To highlight the always sensory sonorities of both sets, with oriental suggestions from Rimsky and a wise use of regulators. The infernal dance was fierce in its intensity, with very premonitory chromatisms of the immediate «Petrushka» in the atmospheric mood and a persistent growing rhythm. The bassoon and the harp lulled the nocturnal placidity of the “Berceuse” and the end was again excited, evidently with the intention of the baton to manifest all his vehemence and win the favor of the audience. He got it.”
Antonio Gascó – Opera World Magazine
“Sergio Alapont ha dato buona prova di sé con una interpretazione briosa, mai sopra le righe, che ha conferito al tutto una feconda unitarietà d’atmosfera, ottenendo dall’Orchestra del Bellini toni ben calibrati che si sono dispiegati in una gamma molto ampia di sonorità.
Gesto chiaro, indicazioni precise nella gestualità e soprattutto un’idea definita delle sonorità e dell’interpretazione voluta; non si può dire che ad Alapont manchino energia e personalità da vendere e che non le abbia estrinsecate in questa occasione.
Fluidità di grande efficacia, dunque, che è sfociata in un clima vivace creato da una bacchetta incisiva e ricca di inventiva.”
Silvana La Porta – aetnascuola.it
“Unter der Leitung von Sergio Alapont bietet dem Hörer das Orchester des Opernhauses in Catania einen optimalen Klangteppich.”
Sven Godenrath
“The conductor was a prophet in his land… For several years the conductor did not appear on these shores and, the truth is that we missed him and once again his appearance was testimony to the good level he has with the baton… Alapont was precisely to work the synchronism of the pages without the outbursts of time so facing the gallery. Rather, savouring the phrases and solving with inspired modulation the attractive themes of each and every one of the parts.”
Antonio Gascó – Opera World Magazine
“The performance of the orchestra was truly excellent, conducted by the Valencian maestro Sergio Alapont, several times present and protagonist of the opera seasons of the Teatro Comunale Claudio Abbado de Ferrara”.
Athos Tromboni – Gli Amici della Musica Net
“The orchestra with the maestro Alapont at the helm was the perfect blend, measured and powerful at the same time, so that it became a celebration, in a joyful explosion of a well-done work, the feeling that everything has bring out as it required the score. Thrilling.”
J.A. Mendiola – AraBalears
“A Carmen to be listened”: The musical direction of Sergio Alapont, at the head of the Orquesta Oviedo Filarmonía, stood out for maintaining the tension of the score, for the timbric brilliance, despite being inside the pit of the theater, and for the doses of energy that became evident from the first note of the prelude.”
Andrea G. Torres – La Nueva España
“Une vraie lumière mozartienne circule et la petite harmonie séduit, sous la direction détaillée et énergique de Sergio Alapont.”
Laurent Barthel – ConcertoNet.com
“Regarding the strong leadership of the Spaniard conductor Sergio Alapont, gives a welcome boost for the excellent choir of the Opéra du Rhin and invites musicians of the Symphony Orchestra of Mulhouse to excel.”
The Lettre du Musician
“Les saisissants et remarquables Chœurs de l’Opéra national du Rhin donnent un sérieux motif de satisfaction – bien secondés par la direction attentive du jeune Sergio Alapont, manœuvrant dans les méandres et les faux-semblants de cette écriture seria.”
David Verdier – Altamusica
“No matter. In the nearly three hours earlier there was anyway exciting musical theater to hear, especially from the Pit. Sergio Alapont would surely have deserved even more applause, not only because everything was performed in the best way, but also thanks to an interpretation that was played with historical knowledge, rather than a historical forced sound through excessive behavior.”
Opernschnipsel Magazine Online
“Sergio Alapont führt das Orchester des Wexford Festival Opera mit sicherer Hand durch die Partitur, bei der sich die Nähe zur Filmmusik nicht negieren lässt.”
Thomas Molke – Online Musik Magazine
“The Orchestra of the Wexford Opera Festival proves under the direction of Sergio Alapont has grown the interpretation style of Cagnoni, in all aspects. So at the end there, not only was frantic joy for the whole orchestra, but also a standing ovation for a production that gets the crowd on their seats, in the most literal sense of the word.”
Thomas Molke – Online Musik Magazine
“Scattante e ottimamente calibrata la direzione orchestrale dello spagnolo Sergio Alapont.”
Sardies Online
“The version chosen by the Valencian conductor SERGIO ALAPONT, very active also in Italy, is also widely shared, while making cuts, he manages to make the whole of the work restoring, for example, the duet of Velletri between Don Alvaro and Don Carlo, usually omitted, it is also true that the work, especially in extreme situations, benefits from the cuts, but the public has appreciated despite the duration, including (short) intervals, has exceeded three hours. A decidedly 1848th reading of the score, giving strength and vigor to the pages of the ensemble without neglecting, however, the care for singing, indeed ideally supporting the stage where the voices are never covered and overwhelmed.”
Andrea Merli – I Teatri dell’Est
“Particulièrement mis à contribution par la partition et par la mise en scène, le chœur de l’Opéra national du Rhin se montre précis, intense et impliqué. L’orchestre symphonique de Mulhouse fait preuve d’une belle homogénéité globale avec des solos instrumentaux – et ils sont nombreux – de qualité. A sa tête, remplaçant Hervé Niquet initialement annoncé, le jeune chef espagnol Sergio Alapont offre une direction animée, vivante et très théâtrale dans une optique parfaitement classique.”
Michel Thomé – Resmusica.com
“The conductor Sergio Alapont proposed a valuable performance being delicate with the small details and getting a transparent sound. Alapont get a comparable result to a specialist ensemble, and all the great recitatives accompagnati outflow with a sound close to the early music, instead of a style too dramatic.”
Stefan Schmöe – Online Musik Magazine
“A consistently good impression leaves the Orchestre symphonique de Mulhouse under the direction of Sergio Alapont. Already with the Ouverture, one can hear the dramatic, springy made music version of the conductor.The strings sound good accentuated and develop a roughened tone.”
Georg Rudiger – kulturjoker.de
“Se tutti sfoggiano recitativi vivaci e ricchi di sfumature espressive, il merito è anche della concertazione di Sergio Alapont, attento all’immediatezza comunicativa e al ritmo teatrale frenetico della “folle giornata”. Alla guida dell’Orchestra Città di Ferrara, il direttore spagnolo propone dunque un Mozart incline a una drammaticità asciutta e a un andamento narrativo serrato, senza tuttavia perdere di vista la dialettica dei contrasti fra la componente tenera e quella brillante.”
Roberto Mori – Connessi all’Opera
“Conductor Sergio Alapont secured buoyant playing from the orchestra.”
Terry Blain – Star Tribune
“There is, of course, Puccini’s lush score, faultlessly performed by the Minnesota Opera Orchestra under the direction of Sergio Alapont.”
Arthur Dorman – Talkin’ Broadway
“Il direttore Sergio Alapont si distingue nei momenti più cameristici e intimi, dando una prova delle capacità del compositore nel sottolineare con pochi tocchi i valori del testo.”
Federico Donatiello – Connessi all’Opera
“The highlight of the program was the Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44, by Rachmaninov whose symphonic works has been dedicated this season. The young Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont, guest on the podium, who had already successfully solved the two initial works thanks to his gestural temperament and control of all sections of the orchestra, took advantage of the sound demands of the score and particularly the initial passages of the second movement, with solos of horn, harp and violin.”
Jaime García Elías – El Informador
“Sul podio SERGIO ALAPONT è stato molto bravo nel saper equilibrare le esigenze più popolari dell’operetta, all’esigenza malinconica della melodia, utilizzando con maestria gli effetti del “rubato” e delle sonorità languide tipici di questo genere.”
Ieri Oggi Domani, Opera
“La sinfonia bellissima è ben suonata con vigore e luminose note ben sorrette da fiati precisi dall’orchestra Città di Ferrara, nota compagine ferrarese guidata da un giovane ma valentissimo e vigoroso M. Sergio Alapont che sa dare un’impronta molto viva all’immortale musica belliniana. Infiamma nei momenti eroici (come il coro “ Guerra Guerra”) e sa tratteggiare con nuance lunari e squisitamente languidi i momenti di sentimento.”
Liricamente
“The musical direction of Sergio Alapont, makes a very interesting proposal of the music of Giuseppe Verdi and the tragedy of Shakespeare.” – Otello
OperaClick
“A virtuous Sergio Alapont conducts the Orquesta de Valencia in style, so clear and precise, with musical intention and inspiration.”
El Periódico Mediterráneo
“Sergio Alapont, at the height of its important conducting career, took the podium transmitting security to the musicians and especially inspired interpretation.”
Levante EMV
“Alapont has given a vivid and precise reading: the relentless pace of the Andantes initial march, with the “cold” sound of horns and brass and sparkling lightness and sensuality “demonic” of the seducer in the Allegro molto of the second part… Alapont has given considerable impetus to the execution, emphasizing the character in a sense “Dionysian” of this symphony, thanks to the dense style of the strings and the vividness of colors. Audience excited and perfectly right.”
Domenico Del Nero – Totalità.it
“The cohesion and precision which Sergio Alapont draws from every member of the orchestra is praiseworthy. Musical phrases are sculpted and details are subtle and nuanced. ”
Emmanuel Dupuy, Diapason
“ …the energetic conducting of Sergio Alapont, with its attention to detail, captures the spirit and the enchanting harmonies of Mozart. ”
Laurent Barthel, ConcertoNet.com
“Loved the direction of Sergio Alapont, Spanish Maestro from Benicassim in Sassari that is already his home and where he was fortunately emerged with important debuts. Debut for Aida as well, but supported by a confident gesture, attention to the stage with ideal support voices, and with attention to both dynamics, never prevaricating and colors, particularly inspiring in the opening scene of the third act on the banks of the Nile and in the grave, in the dreamy and tragic end. Surging and held that the valiant Orchestra Ente Concerti was able to translate into sounds always precise and clean.”
Impiccione Viaggiatore
“Attentive and focused direction of the young but already experienced Sergio Alapont, who led a hard and intense score reading with the excellent orchestra Concerti Ente Marialisa de Carolis.”
SassariNotizie
“The performance of this Aida was headed by Sergio Alapont, already seen at work on the Ente Concerti De Carolis. His conducting has interpreted the” climate “of Aida, his musical setting – very rich in precious refinements stubbornly pursued Verdi – with considerable care and variety of attitudes, qualities essential for a work that always oscillates between the grandiose and the public dimension of the story of the intimate private life.”
La Nuova Sardegna
“The show on Friday night at the Teatro Comunale of Capuccini also said that the voices were right, as was convincing the direction of The Orchestra Concerts by Sergio Alapont, a veteran now for Sassari, also great ballet of the second act. Just short of saying that it was a success? The yes is granted and also a duty.”
Sardegna Dies
“The musical preparation and execution could not have been bettered with Sergio Alapont leading an assured, propulsive, ebullient reading that cascaded off the page and tickled the ear with richly detailed, incisive comic force. Maestro Alapont’s consummate skill was that he could turn on a dime and establish sudden new tempi ‘en masse’ with the balancing skill of an air traffic controller. Also, he was highly adept at partnering his soloists whether in limpid moments of respite from the general madness, in rapid flights of coloratura, or in (sometimes over-extended) cadenzas that never lost forward direction. There are patter sections in the piece that rival the very best Rossini, and Alapont led them with exacting control. The overall shape of the opus was a satisfying build of tension and humor from beginning to end, making Don Bucefalo one of the best musical comedy evenings I have spent in Wexford. Oh hell, make that ‘in the world.’”
James Sohre, Music and Vision
“Alapont conducted from memory and with total control.”
Fernando Herrero, El Note de Castilla
“Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont was impressively collected and commanding in the pit. Conducting the Wexford Festival Opera with brio and clarity, Alapont managed the breakneck tempi with unruffled éclat, and made the busy score dance nimbly. ‘Totally bonkers yet immensely entertaining’ best sums up both the opera and Newbury’s production.”
Opera Today, Claire Seymour
“At the head of a brilliant Wexford Festival Orchestra, the Spanish conductor Sergio Alapont brings out the elegance and the freshness of Cagnoni’s writing.”
Emmanuel Andrieu – Opera Online (France)
“The Wexford Opera Festival Orchestra, under the direction of Sergio Alapont totally captured the light-hearted style of Cagnoni. At the end, not only was there a wildly jubilant reception for the orchestra, but also a standing ovation for a production and staging that had the audience literally leaping from their seats.”
Thomas Molke – Online Musik Magazin (Germany)
“The musical director was Sergio Alapont, who directed Il Capello di Paglia di Firenze at Wexford last year. His very lively conducting perfectly captured all the buffoonery of the opera.”
José M. Irurzun – Opera World
“Under conductor Sergio Alapont the principals – Filippo Fontana (Don Bucefalo), Marie-Ève Munger (Rosa), Matthew Newlin (Belprato) and Jennifer Davis (Agata) – take to their tasks with brio and glee, with Munger providing the evening’s show-stopping vocal acrobatics.”
Michael Dervan – The Irish Times
“Offenbachian in spirit, Donizettian in style, it’s a deliciously orchestrated score, packed full of patter songs, puns, coloratura pyrotechnics and melting serenades, with one sequence that Bucefalo “composes” as he sings and another where he directs. Who knew diegesis was so big in the 1840s? Exquisitely played by the orchestra under Sergio Alapont.”
Anna Picard – The Times
“This is an effervescent score, yet it takes a conductor such as Sergio Alapont to unlock all its potential. The Spaniard has a natural understanding of this repertoire, with the deft technique needed for those passages of breakneck speed and an instinct for the music’s inherent delicacy. Alapont draws playing of brilliant lightness and virtuosity.”
John Allison – The Telegraph
“Sergio Alapont, kept the music on a tight rein”
Andrew Clark – The Financial Times
“Sergio Alapont’s pacy conducting allows the score to dance over the footlights”
George Hall – The Guardian
“In the pit, Sergio Alapont whizzes the orchestra efficiently through the notes”
Rupert Christiansen – The Telegraph
“Sergio Alapont drives the pastiche with panache, with balance between stage and pit gelling perfectly”
Irish Independent
“Sergio Alapont oversaw the electrifyingly played, tongue-in-cheek score, full of intelligent and witty borrowings.”
Roderic Dunnett – theartsdesk.com