“Daniel Hoffmann, the soloist, had already been the recipient of various awards during the federal German competition for young people, “Jugend musiziert”. His career as cellist has been rising meteorically ever since he first took up the instrument at the tender age of six. Dimitry Shostakovich’s cello concerto in e-flat major starts out with a vibrantly performed allegretto movement that continues in restive manner with massive and particularly pure tones by the wind instruments, and ends with ostinato themes by the string section…the moderato movement bursts with energy in its exposition of themes that owe much to the Russian soul; it is here that the cello weeps in attaining the highest violin tones…The third movement consists of nothing more than a virtuoso cadenza replete with technical finesses, which lead into the final movement, allegro con moto, which the composer put in the style of a fantasy…It is a finale in which Shostakovich combines once again the full orchestral range of the cello with the powerful musical expressiveness of the orchestra itself. It was not until the young soloist, Daniel Hoffmann, continued to fascinate the audience by performing two encores that they allowed this remarkable concert to come to an end..”. (Neue Presse Coburg, April 6th, 2010)

“The program culminated, though,…in Dimitry Shostakovich’s concerto for cello and orchestra in e-flat major, opus 107, whose four movements were turned into a remarkable event by the soloist. His technical brilliance, his nuanced expressiveness in even the highest tones, his masterly finessing of the cello from deep double bass tones to the highest flageolet tones of the violin – all that brought the audience to their feet in wild approval. In the third movement, which consists merely of the solo cadenza, 22-year-old Daniel Hoffmann brought his entire youthful artistry to bear, carrying the work through to the celebratory finale with the orchestra…For his encore, this exceptional musician chose the “Courante” from the Solo Suite No. 1 by Johann Sebastian Bach.” (Neue Presse Coburg, April 5th, 2010)

“The highlight of the concert was Dimitry Shostakovich’s e-flat major cello concerto….Daniel Hoffmann was brilliant in his mastery of the difficult and technically very ambitious work. In 1959, Shostakovich dedicated the concerto to his friend, Mstislav Rostropovich..In other words, Daniel Hoffmann took up the challenge of following in the footsteps of a great virtuoso. And he is as convincing in the warm tones of the most sensitive passages as he is in his almost forceful approach to the aggressive-heroic sections of the concerto…The audience’s rousing applause for the young soloist managed to drown out the foot-stamping enthusiasm of the members of the orchestra.” (Frankenpost Hof, April 4th, 2010)