St. Paul Chamber Orchestra

“The orchestra responded with a fine Fifth of Schubert, highlighted by the flamboyant and energetic conducting of Smirnoff…it’s a nostalgic homage to Mozart, and Smirnoff impressively executed the balancing act of keeping a foot in each era.”

ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS

Basel Sinfonietta

“At the moment, the Basel Sinfonietta is at its best; Smirnoff has worked excellently with the musicians and was able to release a great deal of energy from the orchestra. This was proved […] above all after the intermission by Witold Lutoslawski’s Concerto for Orchestra (1954), which demanded the utmost skill from the orchestra, both from a technical point of view and from the ensemble of the players.”

NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG

Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra

“…[Joel Smirnoff] proved a gifted and sympathetic conductor, moving with balletic fluency and assuring an intimate relationship between the words and rhythms of the singers and the colors of the chamber orchestra.”

BOSTON GLOBE

St. Paul Chamber Orchestra

“…there seemed a renewed spirit in [the] interpretation of the "Prague" Symphony on Thursday. Under the direction of Joel Smirnoff, the SPCO poured passion aplenty into a work that…bore a vibrant energy it seldom bears.”

ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS