"...The real star, though, is the orchestra, producing a dazzling array of colours under conductor Daniel Cohen"

(Nick Kimberly, London Evening Standard)

"This is a real ensemble effort, full of vivid characterisations, superbly conducted by Daniel Cohen..."

(Richard Morrisin, The Times)

"...Chef dirigent Daniel Cohen tut das Richtige in einem Werk, das Anrührendes und Aufrührendes in Überfülle vereint: Er hält die nach Hunderten zählenden Mitwirkenden zusammen, sorgt dafür, dass sich die musikalischen Schichten zum Hörerlebnis aus einem Guss vereinen".

(Dr. Christian Knatz, Darmstädter Echo)

"...... The Darmstadt orchestra, finely attuned to the general music director, emphasized the contrasts between chamber-music-like intimacy and eruptive power with striking clarity."...In the closing passages of the Dies irae, the impression was particularly powerful, in which Cohen’s overall concept—carried by the great orchestra—seemed to rise up as accusation, and at the same time as a call for collective reconciliation.".

(Axel Zibulski, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

"General Music Director Daniel Cohen, together with the State Orchestra of Darmstadt, spans a powerful, quasi-symphonic arc of tension over all the small structural parts of the composition, holding everything together. It often rages fiercely, aggressively, loudly and piercingly, but can also sound grotesque and surreal."

(Guido Holze, Frankfurter Allgemeiner)

"General Music Director Daniel Cohen conducted. His extraordinary performance must be mentioned first, because the reference recording from the Vienna State Opera in 1989 under Claudio Abbado is a benchmark that one would normally not consider in the context of a house like Darmstadt. But in this case, the comparison is justified. Plasticity, transparency, and power — presented in the right places perfectly."

(Bernhard Uske, Frankfurter Rundschau)

"The second act opens with an instrumental magic forest and garden by the Darmstadt State Orchestra under the direction of its chief conductor – a natural scene one could have painted. Daniel Cohen meticulously combs through the score for Wagner’s seductive sound textures, which especially come to life in chamber music. That’s why he also doesn’t lose dynamic control, balancing stage and orchestral pit so well that the protagonists don’t need to shout or scream. Quite mysteriously, almost unnoticeably, the lonely warning call of Brangäne rises in the second act above the withdrawn orchestra, which suddenly disappears with a “shimmering intuition.” .

(Opernwelt)

‘The orchestra, conducted by GMD Daniel Cohen, further enhances this magnetic effect with its concentrated interpretation of the long melodic lines of Wagner's music. At times, it is difficult to tell where the greater pull comes from: the pair of singers or the orchestra pit, but it is impossible to escape the musical pull.’

(egotrip.de