The New York Times

"Under Neely, the orchestra captured both Janacek's angularity and his glowing lyricism."

Opera Today

"Conductor David Neely certainly worked his own wonders in the pit, cueing the orchestra and singers from his vantage point, sunken in the middle of the action, with inspired precision. Each year, Maestro Neely brings together top musicians from all over the country and never fails to skillfully knit them together to the highest level of festival quality. To my ear, the results this season were exceptionally fine, and on this evening, Neely elicited a glowing reading of this demanding masterpiece.  Special kudos to the horn section, who charted their way through the score’s expectations with distinction."

Classical Voice America

​​​“Richard Strauss’ own approved reduced orchestration for 60 players was used the following day for Salome, though one would not necessarily have known, so energized was the conducting of David Neely. He led a blisteringly intense reading of the score and was blessed with a vivid production and a gifted cast.”

Opera Today

"Arguably the greatest asset of the performance was David Neely’s sure handed, fleet-footed, scherzo-like approach to the master’s final stage work. Maestro Neely drew extraordinary playing from his instrumentalists, and they reveled in every sparkling orchestral effect. Not to imply there was anything frivolous about his approach, for Mr. Neely also finds weightiness when required, lending even more pomposity to Va, vecchio John, more gravity to Ford’s tortured aria, and more sheen and shimmer to Nanetta’s forest arietta. Has that famous orchestral trill ever had more sparkle and fizz, that closing fugue more impetus and insouciance? Thanks, Maestro, for buoying our spirits and ravishing our ears."

Opera Today

"...If the no-holds-barred singing and rhapsodic playing didn’t send shivers down your spine, well, you were at the wrong address… Music Director David Neely conducted his amassed forces with a loving, knowing baton. DMMO populates its pit with highly accomplished professional musicians from throughout the region (and beyond) and their incisive playing is second to none. The orchestra was a compelling partner in the musical drama, and they rose to meet every challenge.”

Opera News

“David Neely led a thrilling account of the score…This was possibly the most satisfying Giovanni I have encountered on the regional opera scene in the U.S….and the happy news of David Neely’s appointment as DMMO’s first- ever music director portends some exciting operatic growth at Des Moines in years to come."

Little Village

“Under the baton of David Neely, the orchestra painted an auditory canvas that conjured the Moravian forests the composer held so dear.”

Opera Today

“Salome’s instrumentation is a monster score that challenges even established orchestras who play together all season long as a well-established ongoing ensemble. That this outstanding “summer festival” orchestra could coalesce into such a virtuosic band is owing to the towering talents of Music Director and Principal Conductor, David Neely. Presiding over Strauss’s approved “reduced” (but still large) orchestration, Maestro Neely exerted his customary stylistic authority, eliciting thrilling playing from his instrumentalists, while he partnered meticulously with his singers in flawless synchronization. Neely is a gifted musical chameleon, able to encompass a wide oeuvre of styles and repertoire.  David Neely is the (not so) secret sauce that has helped elevate DMMO to the very front ranks of US operatic activity.” 

Opera Today

"In the pit, David Neely elicited such a vibrant, sensitive, idiomatic reading from his players, it seemed the palpable joy of making live music again was oozing from every phrase. The evocative passage of surging, churning muted strings that led to Act II’s second scene was alone worth the price of admission. Maestro Neely’s masterful connection with his panoply of singers resulted in music-making of the first magnitude."

Opera Today

"David Neely seemed to find a perfect way to cleanse the pallet as he led an effervescent reading of Candide. From the downbeat of the thrice-familiar overture to the stirring choral finish, Maestro Neely steered his accomplished forces with infectious relish."

Bloomington Herald-Times

"Sunday's performance was fresh, like welcoming back a good friend and celebrating its reacquaintance...The Concert Orchestra's reading, with Maestro Neely at the helm, was compelling and gorgeous, really top-notch. A stunned and long silence followed its conclusion and then an outburst of grateful audience reaction, much deserved."

Opera News

"Verdi’s score is famously treacherous with its precisely calibrated entrances and quicksilver melodic interchanges; kudos are due to conductor David Neely for exceptional musicianship in keeping matters faithfully on point within DMMO’s unique multi-area playing space."

Opera Today

"The bewitchment on stage was matched by the wizardry in the pit, as conductor David Neely led a multi-faceted, stylistically thrilling reading of one of Janáček’s most varied and demanding scores. Maestro Neely coaxed every bit of fizz and sparkle out of his beautifully polished orchestra to be sure, but all the while he partnered seamlessly with his cast to ensure that the fun bits didn’t mute the bittersweet underpinnings of the Vixen’s journey and untimely end. His was a luminous and commanding musical achievement."

The New Yorker

“​The opera was heard in Strauss’s reduced orchestration; under David Neely’s baton, the musicians still made a splendid racket."

Opera Today

This is the Rusalka I have been waiting for all my life. Des Moines Metro Opera has mounted a stunner of a production, splendidly sung, passionately played, and inventively staged ... David Neely conducted an incandescent reading of this challenging score. Brooding and agitated one moment, lushly layered the next, ethereal and transcendent the following, Maestro Neely handled the work’s complexities and shifts with his usual commendable dexterity. All night long he elicited nigh unto virtuoso playing from his talented band, all the while partnering effortlessly with the singers to create a memorable piece of lyric theatre."

Bloomington Herald-Times

"Savvy conductor David Neely knows how to train an orchestra and spares no energy preparing for whatever musical project he undertakes. He’s certainly done so again. The maestro and his pit musicians served the Bernstein score brilliantly, from the abrasive to the movingly lyrical, from violence-in-sound to young, endangered romance. He also spared no attention on the casts, keeping them sharp and on cue."

Des Moines Register

"David Neely, DMMO’s musical director and principal conductor, marshaled the ensemble cast and the DMMO orchestra through Verdi’s intricate and virtuosic score with aplomb. The concluding fugal ensemble 'All the world’s a hoax' was a triumph of unanimity.”

Opera Today

“Conductor David Neely shaped the piece superbly and elicited virtuosic playing from his excellent instrumentalists. This was a reading fully invested with the psychological import, musical colors, and emotional content that mark the greatest performances.  Maestro Neely carefully balanced this towering achievement in the pit with his sensational cast of vocalists.”

Little Village

“The orchestra unleashed Wagner’s complex musical landscape under the direction of David Neely, bringing the audience to the beautiful, brutal Norwegian coast as soon as the overture began.”

Musical America Worldwide

“David Neely–conducting the second part of a double header with American Apollo that evening–led a taut reading, one that powerfully articulated the work’s dramatic progression”

Opera Warhorses

"Maestro David Neely led a spirited orchestral performance of the symphonically rich score. It was the task of Neely, who is music director of the Des Moines Metro Opera, to advise the cast members on how to approach d’Albert’s musical style and to make numerous musical decisions about how each group of instruments should sound. Neely’s efforts led to an outstanding experience."

Opera News

"The extraordinary refinement of DMMO's orchestral performances under music director David Neely has been one of the great pleasures of recent seasons. Neely's evocation of the disparate sound worlds in the Dvorak and Dove was nothing short of spectacular."

Longboat Observer

“All this was supported and buoyed up by the excellent orchestra and conducting of David Neely, who led the piece as if he had known it forever. Singing, staging and orchestra were beautifully nuanced through every emotion of the composer’s score”

Opera News

“Conductor David Neely led a thrilling account of Strauss's own reduced score for sixty-eight players. This Elektra was a brave endeavor, and one that paid off beautifully.”