“[…] The Lucerne Symphony Orchestra makes for a grand musical impact, prepared with utmost precision by Clemens Heil. And the singers, who enjoy all the complexity of Ligeti’s music with ease. This premiere is a season-opening statement of metropolis calibre.”

–Concerti (Peter Krause) (Review on 'Le Grand Macabre'), 2017

“Above all, the music – the precise Lucerne Symphony Orchestra under Clemens Heil – sharpens the Grand-Guignol-Play with glaring colours and gestures.”

–Luzerner Zeitung (Urs Mattenberger) (Review on 'Le Grand Macabre'), 2017

“[Director] Herbert Fritsch…turns “Le Grand Macabre” into a loud and colourful clownery, decidedly supported by Clemens Heil, the Music Director of the Lucerne Theatre. The giant percussion set, which masters the car horn and doorbell preludes magnificently, and the keyboard-instruments are spread all over the stage, the trumpets of Jericho are thundering from the balcony, and the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra is going all out with muscular brilliance.”

–Neue Zürcher Zeitung (Peter Hagmann), 2017

“Strong contrasts and frequent changes in temperature are predominating, it requires daunting abilities of the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, the musicians excel themselves under the brilliant baton of Clemens Heil. […] Nono’s difficult avantgarde-keywork as part of the repertoire at an opera house of this size at such high level – a real coup!”

–Deutschlandfunk (Luigi Nono: Prometeo), 2016

“Musically, this is a performance is at stunning high level. The fact, that most parts are cast from the house’s own ensemble show, that even such a complex work as “Prometeo” can nowadays be mastered by highly motivated forces of a medium sized theatre. The chorus and the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Clemens Heil are delivering an exceptional performance.”

–Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Luigi Nono: Prometeo), 2016

“That is the new Music Director at the helm of the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, who created an outstanding, shattering sound experience and also managed to existentially convey the tiniest changes, the micro-intervals, the extraordinary dynamic differences from a tenfold pianissimo to a catastrophic explosion and the movements in space.”

–Neue Musik Zeitung, 2016