“An extraordinary conductor”
John Nelson, Directeur Musicale Honoraire, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris
“I consider Mark Laycock to be a friend and very talented colleague with a great future, and I warmly recommend him to you.”
Charles Dutoit 
“The technique of conducting appeared to be his completely”
Daily Telegraph, London
“The young conductor showed his own gifts with every nuance. Here, indeed, is a serious musical talent. With each gesture Laycock is dynamic, subtle, elegant and precise in shaping and inspiring the exact orchestral sound.”
La Presse (Montréal)
“Conducted by Mark Laycock, it featured a rare joint performance of the two choral works Mendelssohn composed for a festival in Leipzig, Germany, in 1840, commemorating the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s epoch-making printing press. The “Festgesang” (“Festive Hymn”) and the Symphony No. 2, “Lobgesang” (“Hymn of Praise”), both rousing pieces, were played back to back, on either side of the scheduled intermission, and the effect was exhilarating. Beyond the galvanizing beauty of the music, the performance took on a special poignancy, even a quiet majesty.”
New York Times
“The opera was expertly conducted by the talented Mark Laycock who used tempos that were just right, not too fast or too slow, so that when the classic Rossini crescendos took place, there was plenty of room to speed things up. His conducting was so secure and the preparation so complete that even in the Dress Rehearsal and at this Prima, the singers were barely looking at him, and he gave such a solid foundation that the cast had the freedom to ornament the opera in what was perhaps the most florid performance I’ve heard of it, from top to bottom.”
Opera-L (Barber of Seville)
“Conductor Mark Laycock — whose control of his forces was evident from the clean first phrases of the overture, the tricky tempo changes of which he negotiated skillfully — laudably gave the score note-complete: cabalettas had their repeats and some clarifying recitative usually cut was restored.”
Opera News (Don Pasquale)
“…a vibrant, expressive performance [of Don Pasquale] by conductor Mark Laycock …Throughout, the orchestra proved a strong partner for the singers, with Laycock drawing a performance that bubbled with excitement and sang with lavish richness.”
Newark Star-Ledger
Mark Laycock is a musician and conductor of the highest order. Since making his conducting debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra at age 21, Maestro Laycock has established a reputation without peer for artistic excellence and critical acclaim while building a vast repertoire through the conducting of nearly 2,000 works. His unique experience has been confirmed overwhelmingly on all levels, from his appearances with major orchestras in the United States and Europe to his ability to communicate and connect with young musicians. Affable and secure, Maestro Mark Laycock possesses a rare blend of old-world knowledge and charm combined with new-world realism and understanding. Maestro Laycock brings to the podium an integrity and ease of confidence without airs, fostering a rehearsal environment that allows musicians to produce music of the finest quality in a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere, while maintaining the highest of artistic standards that remain true to the composer’s intent.
“An indefinable quality among great conductors is that rare ability, not related to any interpretive style, to somehow fuse all elements of a performance into a greater entity with a palpable energy of its own existence. This is a quality that is strikingly evident both intellectually and emotionally in each of Mark Laycock’s performances that I have ever witnessed. When Mark Laycock conducts, everything becomes one: the conductor, the orchestra, the music and the listening public all become part of the music, all become a unified part of something greater than themselves.
Mark Laycock brings out of the musicians exactly what he wants the audience to hear through precise and incisive conducting that never loses musical expression. The result is often a revelation even for the most seasoned and knowledgeable concert listener. He seems to find in the score things that other conductors have not, and he does this in a way that never sounds contrived. The most notable example to me is a remarkable Beethoven Eroica that I heard him conduct with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra. I thought I knew the Eroica inside out, upside down, and backwards, and yet Mark Laycock found and brought out details that I had never heard before; that performance stands out in my mind as one of the best I have ever heard, live or on recordings, of any Beethoven symphony.
No matter what work Mark Laycock is conducting, as a listener I get the sense in his concerts that I am hearing exactly what that composer wanted me to hear and experience. His interpretations reflect a particular perceptiveness when it comes to the analysis and communication of scores, and it is clear from the facial expressions and the body language of the musicians that Mark is not a martinet and that all of them truly enjoy making music with him. No matter what work Mark Laycock is conducting, as a listener I get the sense in his concerts that I am hearing exactly what that composer wanted me to hear and experience.
I have found that many modern conductors are not intensely involved in what they conduct. Toscanini always conducted with intensity, as did Klemperer, for example. Mark Laycock has always been committed completely to every work I have ever heard him conduct, and it is thrilling to hear every one of his performances. They are white hot with passion. In that regard, he reminds me so much of Pablo Casals, for whom music was a necessity of life to be embraced and celebrated with complete joy and conviction. Mark Laycock’s performances are intense, passionate, and charismatic.”
Teri Noel Towe, Classical Music Radio Host, WPRB103.3 FM
