"Music Director Kedrick Armstrong is a flat-out star, and he constructed a season that outshone the orchestra’s neighbors in vision and excitement."

"Armstrong and the orchestra were in glorious accord. Everything from richly blended strings to the spry and musing woodwind choir, the burnished French horns, blazing brasses and a pair of thundering timpanists combined in a singular performance. The orchestra sounded as fine as it ever has...With more performances like this one, the lights will shine in bright affirmation."

“Conductor Kedrick Armstrong was in full command of his musical forces, and elicited an assured reading from his formidable musicians. Maestro Armstrong masterfully drew out a plethora of exciting colors from the band and segued with consummate ease between the shifting musical styles.”

"In Kedrick Armstrong, the Oakland Symphony has found a musician who appears to be a perfect fit... Nielsen’s symphony was bursting with energy and drive as Armstrong led an unflagging performance that lifted the spirit."

"Oakland Symphony concerts feel like a party with a good live band, and Armstrong leans into that energy, shaping programs that are as spontaneous as the people who show up to hear them."

"Conductor Kendrick Armstrong skillfully led the cast across a wide variety of styles, from music drawing on the classical operatic tradition to ragtime, folk tunes, church music and even barbershop quartet."

"Conductor Kedrick Armstrong, music director for the Oakland Symphony, is brilliant, bringing out the score’s multifarious colors and motivic connection while holding things together through tricky metrical changes."

"[Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5] was wrenching in its anguish but also punchy and mighty."

"A musical activist of the highest order and in the best sense." 

“Armstrong ends with a flourish, followed by a series of wide gestures in thanks to each section of the immense symphony behind him. The crowd stands in unison for the culmination of a striking debut, promising an exciting new era for the symphony.”

Kedrick Armstrong, conductor