Israel Gursky

Press Reviews

Il Postino

"El director concertador Israeli Israel Gursky desprendió de la Orquesta de la Ópera un sonido afinado, matizado, justo y eficaz." (Click here for full review.)

(The Israeli concert director Israel Gursky released from the Opera Orchestra a sound that was tuned, nuanced, fair and effective.)

"Otro de los aspectos que enriqueció la puesta en escena, estrenada en el Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, en Los Ángeles, California, el 23 de septiembre de 2010, fue el acompañamiento musical, a cargo del Coro y de la Orquesta del Teatro de Bellas Artes, bajo la dirección de Israel Gursky, porque fue el acoplamiento ideal para los actores centrales." (Click here for full review.)

(Another aspect that enriched the staging, which premiered at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, California on September 23, 2010, was the musical accompaniment by the choir and the Orchestra of the Teatro de Bellas Artes, under the direction of Israel Gursky, because it was the ideal coupling for the central actors.)

"Afinidad y compenetración existió entre la orquesta y el director israelí Israel Gursky quien con seguridad y dinamismo extrajo la musicalidad y ligereza de la orquestación que fusiona diversos estilos e influencias como Puccini y Debussy entre otros." (Click here for full review.)

(Affinity and rapport existed between the orchestra and Israeli conductor Israel Gursky who with security and dynamics extracted musicality and lightness from the orchestration that fused the diverse styles and influences such as Puccini and Debussy among others.)

Don Pasquale

"There was a great deal of of spark from chorus and orchestra alike. Conductor Israel Gursky took the opening measures of the overture at warp speed, sending a fun jolt through the house...the net effect of Gursky's propulsive but eloquently contoured and rubato-sensitive approach to the score yielded consistently persuasive results."

Les Contes d'Hoffman

"The rest of the soloists and the chorus made dynamic contributions... So did the orchestra. Despite being chamber-sized, that ensemble produced a good deal of cohesive sound and expressive depth for conductor Israel Gursky, whose knowing way with the score yielded equally satisfying doses of gentle nuance and all-out, riveting passion." (Click here to read full review.)

"Throughout the evening, Israel Gursky and the small but stuffed-to-the-gills pit orchestra did a fine job accompanying the cast without drowning them out." (Click here to read full review.)

"Israel Gursky conducted convincingly in the pit..."

Faust

"Under Israel Gursky's baton, the 31 Alabama Symphony musicians forged a silvery blend with the leads and chorus, its ebbs and swells impeccably calculated, the opera's rich orchestration and melodies soaring resplendently." (Click here to read full review.)

Hänsel und Gretel

"PORTopera's new production of "Hansel and Gretel," which opened Thursday at Merrill Auditorium, has everything -- wonderful sets and costumes, excellent singing in all the roles, and some of the best orchestral music I've heard from the pit in years. Under conductor Israel Gursky, it even has echoes of Wagner." (Click here to read full review.)

"Humperdinck's score was in the capable hands of Israel Gursky who got things off to a glorious beginning with a gleaming reading of the overture that had Wagnerian breadth and allowed the music to soar and, well, do it's job. Throughout the evening Gursky struck an ideal balance never allowing the orchestra to cover the singers at any point, yet permitting the house to swell with sound at every climax. The band has rarely sounded better than they have here."

Roméo et Juliette

"This year marked the company debut of Israel Gursky, a gifted young conductor whose quiet command drew lush, beautiful sounds from the pit. Tempos were brisk, and lines were shaped exquisitely: the climatic crowd scene, in which Mercutio and Tybalt are slain, was beautifully crafted by Gursky and Vaughn, with rousing well-executed swordplay choreographed by Mark Bedell."

"Vaughn's artistic direction, however, coupled with the superb conducting of Israel Gursky, reveals a thoroughly modern masterpiece... Gursky's orchestra, composed mainly of Portland Symphony musicians, was indistinguishable from that of the Metropolitan Opera and often better, for example in the moving cello and violin duos."

Don Giovanni

"What a superb house debut for conductor Israel Gursky. As the company's assistant conductor, he knows this orchestra, which put a full palette of color and texture at his disposal."

"One sits for three hours as if facing a headwind that blows with passionate velocity from stage and orchestra pit, where WNO assistant conductor Israel Gursky made his main-stage debut as a man closely attuned to Pascoe's concept of the work."