"...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 Quite mysteriously, almost unnoticeably, the lonely warning call of Brangäne rises in the second act above the withdrawn orchestra, which suddenly disappears with a “shimmering intuition.”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

“Unter der Leitung von Generalmusikdirektor Daniel Cohen haben der Symphonische ChorBamberg, der Chor des Staatstheaters und das Staatsorchester in Darmstadt Verdis „Messada Requiem“ eindrucksvoll zur Aufführung gebracht. […] Unterstützt durch den Symphonischen Chor Bamberg, verschmelzen der Chor des Staatstheaters und das Staatsorchester unter der Leitung von Daniel Cohen zu einem großen harmonischen Klangkörper und machen insbesondere die Tutti-Passagen zu einem starken Erlebnis.”

(Irem Cati, Frankfurter Allgemeiner)

"The music of Elektra was truly electrifying”

(hr2 Frühkritik)

"“Three women and a giant orchestra in great form make the opera premiere of “Elektra” a scary pleasure.””

(Darmstädter Echo)

“Ma il pregio del discorso musicale di Battistelli è quel filo narrativo che riesce a coccolare l’ascoltatore per più di un’ora e mezza con poca stanchezza, merito anche di un giovanissimo direttore, Daniel Cohen, che sembra in estrema confidenza con quel linguaggio e trova il modo di espletarlo in maniera chiara e convincente, trasformando ogni sussulto in nota e resistendo ad ogni tentazione di impasto."

(David Toschi, OperaClick)

“Dirigent Daniel Cohen und das Orchester der Deutschen Oper agieren – mit diskreter bis eleganter Unterstützung durch das Klangdesign von Benjamin Schulz – auf der Qualitätshöhe eines internationalen Spitzenhauses."

(David Toschi, Die Deutsche Bühne)

“con un'esecuzione stellare della Staatsorchester sotto la direzione del GMD Daniel Cohen. L'intricata musica di Berg suona così leggera che la sua struttura danza davanti agli occhi. Il forte ensemble ha spazio per cantare magnificamente."
"mit einer Sternstunde des Staatsorchesters unter der Leitung von GMD Daniel Cohen. Bergs intrikate Musik klingt so leicht, dass ihr Gewebe einem vor Augen tanzt. Dem starken Ensemble bleibt Luft zum Schöngesang"

(Judith von Sternburg, Frankfurter Rundschau, Opernwelt)

“like the Shakespearean woodland, that enchanting place where the action takes place, the orchestra has managed to wrap the stage in a supernatural atmosphere, well dosing the chromatic palette of its various sections, and gesturing with ease the different sound features present in the score without ever overwhelming the voices, with which it maintains instead a continuous dialogue”

(GBOPERA Magazine)