"The size of his ensemble--some 28 singers (including four soloists) and 25 musicians playing period instruments--provided an elegant balance, allowing the well-produced choral sound to float over the orchestra, to be enriched by it, but never competing with the orchestra for dominance. Equally important were Valenzuela's precise and articulate sense of phrasing and his downbeats that exploded upwards, keeping the choral motion lithe and propulsive."

...Sandiego.com,
Ken Herman 2008

"I must confess that it was surprisingly satisfying to hear, in great part because of the polished and consistently stylish playing of the chamber orchestra's instrumentalists and the equally refined and historically-informed singing of the Bach Collegium"

...Sandiego.com,
Ken Herman 2007

"Under the Collegium’s Music Director Ruben Valenzuela, a perfect subdued and exquisite sound was elicited from the supple small chorus of eight voices and the players of period instruments with their pure and softened timbres."

...Sandiego.com,
George Weinberg-Harter 2007

"What San Diego rarely experiences (has it ever?) is a serious, period-instrument performance done in the style and proportion that the composer himself might have actually recognized...Enter Ruben Valenzuela and his plucky Bach Collegium San Diego, who staged a breath-taking and eye-opening (or should we say ear-opening) period instrument performance of Messiah Sunday evening at St. Paul’s Cathedral under the guest conductor Stephen Sturk."

...Sandiego.com,
Ken Herman 2007

"Ruben Valenzuela knew how to impress with his organ playing. The richly ornamented organ chorale Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele by J.S. Bach resounded at the beginning, and at the end his virtuoso Fantasia in G-Major was celebrated with bravura. Thus were demonstrated the advantages of the instrument in the Schillerkirche, achieving a ringing sound using contrasting registers."

...Thüringer Landeszeitung,
Unaccredited 2005

"Valenzuela's talents as a Bach conductor were displayed at their fullest. Their sound was fresh, clean, and bright, yet at the same time warm. The balance was flawless, bringing out the music's often complex contrapuntal lines with delectable clarity."

...The San Diego Reader,
Jonathan Saville 2004