'In the second half, Bäumer and his musicians made a highly-convincing case for Nielsen and his Fifth Symphony op.50 written in 1922. In the first of the two movements - an expansive Adagio - a repeated march rhythm from the prominently-featured snare drum is at first bizarrely distorted before finally taking its leave offstage. Four years after the catastrophic First World War, a clearer statement could hardly be imagined. The lone islands of sound, especially the superb fading-out of the clarinet solo at the end of the first movement, had a beguiling presence, and the strong brass played out the richer melos of the second movement to particular effect.'
Allgemeine Zeitung Rhein Main Presse, 12.10.2015

'Surges of energy, dramatic caesuras, smouldering interludes [...]. [D]ark nuances, strings that could sometimes even sound astringent, and huge distances between the delicate pianos and fiery fortissimos.'
Stuttgarter Zeitung, 31.03.2015 on Strauss's Alpine Symphony with the Stuttgart Philharmonic

'The real turning point came after the interval with Milhaud's "Le Boeuf sur le Toit". Peppered with parody, this work first became truly popular as a dance pantomime, and here it effervesced with rhythm and wit under Hermann Bäumer. The brusque and superficial tone was appropriate, as were the accents, but even so the work seems somewhat lengthy without the visual aspect of the ballet.

The strongest and most musically convincing performance proved to be "Ma mère l'oye"by Maurice Ravel. Bäumer's feeling for the poetic in these fairytale miniatures was remarkable, as was his understanding of how to create tension within them.'
Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten, 12.03.2015 on Bäumer's début with the Dresden Staatskapelle

'Both scores are in the best of hands with Hermann Bäumer and the Mainz Philharmonic Orchestra.'
Fono Forum, 02/2014 on the recording of Friedrich Gernsheim's Symphonies no.1 and no.3.

'Hermann Bäumer proves that even a conventional opera orchestra is capable of playing Baroque music stylistically, with minimal vibrato, lively gesture and wonderful transparency.'
Frankfurter Allegmeine Zeitung, 02.11.2013 on Handel's "Rinaldo"

'The Mainz orchestra under Hermann Bäumer deserve a hearty congratulations, both for their fluid rendition of the occasionally complex rhythms and iridescent layers of sound, and also for maintaining the great aura-like arch of the Dream Ballad in spite of nuanced attention to detail.'
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 14.01.2013 on Henze's "Prinz von Homburg"

'As a former member of the Berlin Philharmonic, Hermann Bäumer knows what orchestral musicians want: not expressive histrionics or podium sorcery but a consistently delivered beat. His beat never lacked clarity.'
klassik.com, 02.12.2012

'Fortunately Hermann Bäumer - music director in Mainz - had kept something in reserve for Bruckner's rarely-heard Second Symphony in its tempered 1877 version. He made good use of it to trace the delicate oscillogram of piano idylls, forte climaxes (particularly in the caustic Scherzo) and dramatic pauses. He allowed the orchestra to breathe whilst ensuring a powerful diction. Its apotheosis was found in the Finale at the radiant return of the triumphant main theme in C major.'
Süddeutsche Zeitung, 28.11.2012, review of concert with Bavarian State Orchestra

'Cohesion, committed concentration, balance and precision, all achieved with discreet, circumspect gesture.'
Der Tagesspiegel, 04.05.2011 on the performance of Bruckner's Eighth Symphony with the German National Youth Orchestra

'Bäumer is not an autocrat but a democrat, elucidating rather than simply demanding.'

St. Galler Tagblatt, 24.11.2011