"Harnoncourt's view can be described as a discovery, for the conductor broke more than one lance for the Schumann opera. Every crescendo and every break was considered; in quite the old style he induced the Chamber Orchestra of Europe to boldly go to the limit of the technically and interpretatively feasible, instead of luxuriating in rich sound. … By reducing the opera to its psychic elements, Nikolaus Harnoncourt has found how to retrieve everything that is vital from the score of this almost forgotten Schumann work.” (Hagen Kunze, Neue Musikzeitung, August / September 1996)

"In Harnoncourt's committed hands, the score sounds more beautiful than in earlier versions, and the cast is well chosen: fresh, young voices.“ (Hugh Canning, Sunday Times, 10 August 1997)