Press

“Finally, a fitting tribute to conductor John Baril is in order. The CCO Music Director marks his 30 years with the company. In those years, he has always led a highly professional and polished pit orchestra, shown extreme sensitivity to his singers, and served as the musical glue that binds every production he leads. It is to Baril’s credit that the overture made the impact it did even with the pantomime. He engaged with the audience while leading the Radetzky March, in the set change between Act II and the shorter Act III. As usual, his awesome orchestral players, guided by his assured hand, supported the singers, particularly in the often-difficult transitions between dialogue and singing. Baril is a treasure, the heart of CCO, and his three decades are justly highlighted by the company in this season’s return to its venue and its roots, showcased in this joyous production of Die Fledermaus.”

– Kelly Dean Hansen, Ph.D.,  Weekly Call Register, July 2022

Lucia di Lammermoor

John Baril presided very capably, admirably allowing many numbers their full repeats and endings.
— Opera News October, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

…an ensemble as powerful as Donizetti’s score, which is impressively delivered by John Baril and the festival orchestra.
— ColoradoDrama.com July, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

An orchestra can get lost amid such pyrotechnics. This one, lead by John Baril, navigates the sometimes demanding score well, not only standing up to the massive vocal talent on the stage, but supporting it with equal skill, revealing the fascinating dark underpinnings of a composition that often contradicts the text.
— Colorado Springs Gazette July, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

Conductor John Baril, the company’s music director, turns in a strong performance in the pit, capably pacing the production and backing the singers.
— Denver Post June, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

One owes a debt of gratitude to conductor John Baril for pacing the proceedings with a sensitive baton, which creates a glorious synchronization of the luscious Central City Opera orchestra with the singers onstage.
— Outfront June, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

Conductor John Baril makes magic with the CCO pit band, distinguished further by principal flutist Jessica Warren-Acosta as Petrova’s partner in the “Mad Scene.” No matter how you read the Sir Walter Scott’s novel that is the source of Donizetti’s libretto, “Lucia” is heavy stuff, and that encourages some to bring Wagnerian weight to the score. Not so [Baril] who — stressing the marvelous lightness of Petrova’s voice — emphasized the transparency of the score [to] make it downright luminescent.
— Boulder Daily Camera June, 2009

Madama Butterfly

In the pit, John Baril achieved good balance and reasonable flow.
— Opera News October, 2005

Madama Butterfly

The casting is impeccable, and the orchestra, under the direction of John Baril, sounds terrific.
— Westword July, 2005

Madama Butterfly

Conductor John Baril leads a talented Festival Orchestra that delivers a warm, deliciously melodic rendition of Puccini’s score.
— ColoradoDrama.com July, 2005

Madama Butterfly

In the pit, Baril was efficient in leading the orchestra through Puccini’s vivid score; tempos and balances proved mostly ideal.
— Rocky Mountain News June, 2005

Madama Butterfly

Resident Conductor John Baril did his usual capable job in the pit…
— The Denver Post June, 2005

Madama Butterfly

The orchestra, conducted by John Baril, is professional and well-balanced, particularly the strings, whose opening fugue is crisp and vibrant, and whose pizzicato accompaniment of the famous “Humming Chorus” is carefully restrained. The accompaniment to the final suicide scene is brilliant.
— Boulder Daily Camera June, 2005

Magic Flute

The Chorus, superbly prepared by John Baril, provided the most musically moving moments of the evening.
— Boulder Daily Camera November, 2006

Otello

The composer, who wrote his vocal parts in the florid bel canto style that dominated Italian opera in the early 19th Century, requires three first-rate tenors in major roles, a challenge for any company that is met triumphantly in CCO music director John Baril’s casting.  Rossini’s demands on the orchestra are every bit as stringent as on his singers.  The score is long and often thankless for the musicians, but Baril, who conducts, brings out their best, including prominent solos for principal horn Carolyn Kunicki and harpist Janet Harriman.  This ambitious Otello is both a strong argument for the composer and an exemplar for the presentation of his works.
— Kelly Dean Hansen, Denver Hub Denver Post, August, 2023

Otello

Maestro John Baril and the Festival Orchestra give full breath to Rossini’s epic score.
— Bob Bows, Colorado Theatre Reviews, July, 2023

Otello

Under John Baril, the orchestra gives a sprightly and stylish performance of Rossini’s score. Special credit goes to the sparkling woodwinds and horn players for their solo turns.
— Sharps and Flatirons, July, 2023

Romeo et Juliette

…and of conductor John Baril, whose pacing offered both dramatic excitement and vocal space. The orchestra may have managed just a tentative-sounding overture, but the players gathered their forces, found some of the sharp-edged atacks and the color that had been missing at the beginning and provided a vivid soundscape for the rest of the evening.
— Joan Reinthaler Washington Post February, 2016

Romeo et Juliette

Against this luscious setting played the crystalline tones of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, led with a deft baton by Conductor John Baril. Smoothly transitioning from the exuberant staccatos of Act I to the languorous romantic melodies of Acts II and V, the orchestra perfectly prepared the singers for musical excellence. And that, certainly, was achieved.
— Michael Poandl DC Metro Theatre Arts February, 2016

Romeo et Juliette

John Baril, Music Director, leads the 53-piece Festival Orchestra through a lovely rendition of Gounod’s well-tempered score (Romeo et Juliette).
— Bob Bows, Colorado Drama, July, 2023

Romeo et Juliette

On the musical side, John Baril cast a spell by inspiring the company’s orchestra to produce a beautiful, cohesive sound highlighted by luscious string sonorities (Romeo et Juliette).
— David Skolnik, the Gazette, July, 2023
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Lucia di Lammermoor

John Baril presided very capably, admirably allowing many numbers their full repeats and endings.
— Opera News October, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

…an ensemble as powerful as Donizetti’s score, which is impressively delivered by John Baril and the festival orchestra.
— ColoradoDrama.com July, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

An orchestra can get lost amid such pyrotechnics. This one, lead by John Baril, navigates the sometimes demanding score well, not only standing up to the massive vocal talent on the stage, but supporting it with equal skill, revealing the fascinating dark underpinnings of a composition that often contradicts the text.
— Colorado Springs Gazette July, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

Conductor John Baril, the company’s music director, turns in a strong performance in the pit, capably pacing the production and backing the singers.
— Denver Post June, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

One owes a debt of gratitude to conductor John Baril for pacing the proceedings with a sensitive baton, which creates a glorious synchronization of the luscious Central City Opera orchestra with the singers onstage.
— Outfront June, 2009

Lucia di Lammermoor

Conductor John Baril makes magic with the CCO pit band, distinguished further by principal flutist Jessica Warren-Acosta as Petrova’s partner in the “Mad Scene.” No matter how you read the Sir Walter Scott’s novel that is the source of Donizetti’s libretto, “Lucia” is heavy stuff, and that encourages some to bring Wagnerian weight to the score. Not so [Baril] who — stressing the marvelous lightness of Petrova’s voice — emphasized the transparency of the score [to] make it downright luminescent.
— Boulder Daily Camera June, 2009

Madama Butterfly

In the pit, John Baril achieved good balance and reasonable flow.
— Opera News October, 2005

Madama Butterfly

The casting is impeccable, and the orchestra, under the direction of John Baril, sounds terrific.
— Westword July, 2005

Madama Butterfly

Conductor John Baril leads a talented Festival Orchestra that delivers a warm, deliciously melodic rendition of Puccini’s score.
— ColoradoDrama.com July, 2005

Madama Butterfly

In the pit, Baril was efficient in leading the orchestra through Puccini’s vivid score; tempos and balances proved mostly ideal.
— Rocky Mountain News June, 2005

Madama Butterfly

Resident Conductor John Baril did his usual capable job in the pit…
— The Denver Post June, 2005

Madama Butterfly

The orchestra, conducted by John Baril, is professional and well-balanced, particularly the strings, whose opening fugue is crisp and vibrant, and whose pizzicato accompaniment of the famous “Humming Chorus” is carefully restrained. The accompaniment to the final suicide scene is brilliant.
— Boulder Daily Camera June, 2005

Magic Flute

The Chorus, superbly prepared by John Baril, provided the most musically moving moments of the evening.
— Boulder Daily Camera November, 2006

Otello

The composer, who wrote his vocal parts in the florid bel canto style that dominated Italian opera in the early 19th Century, requires three first-rate tenors in major roles, a challenge for any company that is met triumphantly in CCO music director John Baril’s casting.  Rossini’s demands on the orchestra are every bit as stringent as on his singers.  The score is long and often thankless for the musicians, but Baril, who conducts, brings out their best, including prominent solos for principal horn Carolyn Kunicki and harpist Janet Harriman.  This ambitious Otello is both a strong argument for the composer and an exemplar for the presentation of his works.
— Kelly Dean Hansen, Denver Hub Denver Post, August, 2023

Otello

Maestro John Baril and the Festival Orchestra give full breath to Rossini’s epic score.
— Bob Bows, Colorado Theatre Reviews, July, 2023

Otello

Under John Baril, the orchestra gives a sprightly and stylish performance of Rossini’s score. Special credit goes to the sparkling woodwinds and horn players for their solo turns.
— Sharps and Flatirons, July, 2023

Romeo et Juliette

…and of conductor John Baril, whose pacing offered both dramatic excitement and vocal space. The orchestra may have managed just a tentative-sounding overture, but the players gathered their forces, found some of the sharp-edged atacks and the color that had been missing at the beginning and provided a vivid soundscape for the rest of the evening.
— Joan Reinthaler Washington Post February, 2016

Romeo et Juliette

Against this luscious setting played the crystalline tones of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, led with a deft baton by Conductor John Baril. Smoothly transitioning from the exuberant staccatos of Act I to the languorous romantic melodies of Acts II and V, the orchestra perfectly prepared the singers for musical excellence. And that, certainly, was achieved.
— Michael Poandl DC Metro Theatre Arts February, 2016

Romeo et Juliette

John Baril, Music Director, leads the 53-piece Festival Orchestra through a lovely rendition of Gounod’s well-tempered score (Romeo et Juliette).
— Bob Bows, Colorado Drama, July, 2023

Romeo et Juliette

On the musical side, John Baril cast a spell by inspiring the company’s orchestra to produce a beautiful, cohesive sound highlighted by luscious string sonorities (Romeo et Juliette).
— David Skolnik, the Gazette, July, 2023
1 … 3 4 5 6 7