Musically, it is an outstanding evening. Outstanding. Joachim Bäckström, in the title role, masters all the difficulties of the part, shifting between torment and lyrical brightness. Matilda Sterby is heartbreakingly wonderful as Ellen Orford, the kind-hearted schoolteacher who cares for Grimes and his apprentice. Their duets linger most strongly in my memory." Peter Grimes/GöteborgsOperan 2025
Bo Löfvendahl/Svenska Dagbladet, 2025-03-09
“The most pleasant surprise of the evening is Joachim Bäckström in the title role. Having previously heard him as both Tamino and the Duke in Rigoletto, I was excited to hear him sing Wagner. Parsifal is not a difficult or heavy (or comparatively long) role for a Wagnerian tenor, but it can be a daunting task for a lyrical, lighter voice. I much prefer a younger, lighter tenor in this role to a larger, heroic tenor voice; Parsifal is young, inexperienced, unassuming, and that should be heard in the singing if you value credibility over sheer power. Bäckström is an excellent opera singer; he does not try to sing what he cannot. He uses his slender but powerful voice with great intelligence and dares to use a lot of piano singing, something this role requires more than one would think. His voice is free of forced vibrato in the loud passages, and the upper register has a very attractive brilliance that cuts through the orchestra with its overtones. In the long scene with Kundry in the second act, it is clear that he has more than enough vocal power and stamina for this kind of role.” Parsifal/Royal Swedish Opera 2024
Carl Asker/interclassical.com - April 2 2024
"Francis is a killer tenor part with a wide range, but Joachim Bäckström is capable of spellbinding falsetto in his part’s highest notes. Bäckström has perhaps the most challenging acting of all, needing to fluidly switch between his charismatic public persona, his manipulative intimacy with Nelly or Rita, and his occasional lapses dues to his frustrations (once walking into Nelly’s flat and asking her ‘Seen many nutters today?’). He met this challenge brilliantly, both varying vocal colour and mannerisms depending on the situation. It is a joy to experience music performed by the singers it was written for when it shows off their strengths like this." Mythomania/Gothenburg Opera
Niklas Smith/Seen and Heard International – 11 October 2023
"Joachim Bäckström gibt einen Don Carlos, dem die Reserven nie auszugehen scheinen. In der Tongebung und Intensität seiner Bühnenerscheinung erinnert er stark an Neil Shicoff. / Joachim Bäckström gives a Don Carlos who never seems to run out of reserves. In the tone and intensity of his stage appearance, he is strongly reminiscent of Neil Shicoff." - Don Carlos/Theater Basel 2022
Jan Krobot/Oneline Merker - May 15 2022
"The main character is Peter Grimes, a fisherman living alone on a cliff above the town. He was brilliantly portrayed by Swedish tenor Joachim Bäckström. He managed a dramatic and firmly tense dramatic position with a resounding and brassy-sounding tenor, strenuously and without difficulty. He was also an acting-convincing representative of a rough, stubborn and bitter man who cannot succeed in the fight for his happiness." - Peter Grimes/the National Theater Brno 2021
Karolina Štorková/Operaplus.cz - Oct 8 2021
"The tenor of the title role, Swedish tenor Joachim Bäckström, paid maximum attention to himself. His combination of musical expression, acting and singing discipline surpassed other performers by one class."
"A perfectly balanced, direct, and confident voice seemed as if the singer was singing all positions in one register. Equilibrium served as a secure basis for the charismatic depiction of Grimes' troubled psyche. The tenor's lyrical rendition often shifted the character's perception to compassion and an attempt to penetrate the hard surface of a complete character." - Peter Grimes/the National Theater Brno 2021
Boris Klepal/Aktuálně.cz, - Oct 15 2021
"The female singer’s delicate and sensitive soprano was the best “companion” to Joachim Bäckström’s sometimes harsh and sometimes tender expression. It is the complex and contradictory emotional life of the title character that deserves a singer who is not only able to penetrate the mind of the chosen character, but who also possesses a wide expressive palette with which to present this unfortunate soul to the audience. And Bäckström is undoubtedly this singer – his voice went from the most menacing levels to the most tender gentleness with complete naturalness. Moreover, he always supported these expressive means perfectly with appropriately used dynamics, which often immediately went from extreme to extreme, but still preserved maximum musicality." - Peter Grimes/the National Theater Brno 2021
Lukáš Pavlica/Music Friendly City Brno 28 October 2021
"Der weiche, biegsame und höhensichere lyrische Tenor des Schweden Joachim Bäckström erweist sich mit seinen Spinto-Qualitäten als hinreißende Besetzung der Titelpartie." - Hoffmanns erzählungen/Musiktheater im Revier
Peter Bilsing/Der Opernfreund - 2 June 2017
”Joachim Bäckströms Hoffmann hat noblen Schmelz, Wärme, Seele,.. ein Tenor von fabelhaft viriler Eleganz." - Hoffmanns erzählungen/Musiktheater im Revier
L. von der Gönna/ Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (Kultur) - 11 June 2017
"Joachim Bäckström captivated as Don José in only his second role at the Gothenburg Opera (...). His bright tenor sounded like a clarion all the way to the top notes, but was equally capable of sublime emotion in ‘La fleur que tu m’avais jetée’. Mr Bäckström’s acting explored the contradictions of Don José’s character, with flashes of his jealous and violent side showing before the terrifying eruptions of the last two acts, but also a believable understanding of the sense of duty that so bitterly disappoints Carmen in Act II" - Carmen/GöteborgsOperan 2016
Niklas Smith/Seen and Heard International, December 12 2016
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
photo by Emelie Kroon
