Jamie Barton Takes UK by Storm as Favorite 'Queer Girl with A Nose Ring'
"We are witnessing something rather remarkable. That moment an audience falls in love with a singer." Jamie Barton’s media blitz ahead of Last Night of the Proms included appearances on television, radio, national print media, podcasts, and digital and glossy magazines.
September 16, 2019
““We are witnessing something rather remarkable. That moment an audience falls in love with a singer.””
Jamie Barton’s headlining performance at Last Night of the Proms left fans and audience members around the world glowing. Her flurry of media appearances, including features on BBC World Television’s GMT, Today Programme, In Tune, Breakfast, Front Row Live, BBC News, BBC Digital, The Times, The Guardian, The American Magazine, Classical Music Magazine, and Guilty Feminist, were followed by rave reviews afterwards.
Photo by Chris Christodoulou
Jamie Barton Speaks out for Body Acceptance & Queer Rights in The Times
“After thinking about what she really wanted to project to an audience of millions, she came to the conclusion that exhorting Britain’s naval hegemony wasn’t the only interesting message she could broadcast. “When I sat down with the BBC in October I told them, ‘You know, I can think of a flag that I can get behind. I’d really like to carry the Pride flag.’” The American mezzo tackles hot-button issues in this in-depth profile.
September 12, 2019
““She does not have any truck with the idea that singers playing romantic heroes and heroines on the stage are more credible if they are svelte. ‘Pardon me, but that’s a bullshit argument. Audiences want to see themselves reflected on stage. So to reduce what is represented on stage to a very narrow box of looks, you’re cutting out portions of the audience.’””
Photo by Sarah Creswell
Ahead of headlining Last Night of the Proms, mezzo Jamie Barton was the subject of a major profile in The Times. Barton advocated for the rights of all audiences, regardless of their body size or sexual identity, to be represented onstage.
“Barton is serious about standing up for gay rights at an event that is normally free of politics, sexual or otherwise – the BBC even vets the conductor’s Last Night speech to check for anything that would compromise its objectivity. She has a simple riposte to critics on social media. ‘Guest artists have always brought their own personal swing to this [concert]. And, quite honestly, the BBC knew who they were hiring. I showed up to the table being exactly who I am. And in general I don’t feel that queer culture should be set apart from normal culture. It’s part of my life, it’s a part of so many musicians’ lives.’”
Refugee Orchestra Project Makes Successful UK Debut
“Lidiya Yankovskaya has a passion for the new and for the neglected. She’s here for a Refugee Orchestra concert, she’s the Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, and a whole host of other things that make me feel deeply inadequate.” Ahead of ROP’s London debut, Artistic Director Lidiya Yankovskaya got the word out.
September 4, 2019
““The richness, variety and depth of music that has come out of immigrant and refugee communities is immense. I hope our audiences see that refugees have come from many places throughout our history, and any of us could find ourselves in the position of desperately needing help.””
The Refugee Orchestra Project has just made its UK Debut under the leadership of its founder and artistic director Lidiya Yankovskaya. The Russian-American maestra made several important media appearances in London, including features on BBC Radio 3 In Tune, Newsday, The American Magazine, and Classical Music Magazine.
Photo by Nick Rutter
“‘In these divisive times, vocal support of refugees has become critical – and musicians are uniquely well-positioned to address this issue,’ explains Yankovskaya. ‘Our art form crosses linguistic and cultural boundaries, and so much of what we do is rooted in collaboration.’”
The Cover Star of Classical Music Magazine's September Issue Is...
“I’m interested in building relationships with those houses, like San Francisco, who are doing really good work, but also trying to be inclusive in terms of who they hire as well as who they market to. That is a direction opera needs to go in to stay relevant and viable.” From witches and Wagner to women championing body positivity, this star mezzo-soprano talks all things opera with Classical Music Magazine.
September 1, 2019
“‘A witch is inherently the story of a woman going against what society deems worthy, beautiful, and powerful.””
Classical Music Magazine proclaims, “this is The Season of Jamie Barton.” In conversation with Lisa Houston, Barton opened up about her whirlwind schedule, getting her start as a young singer, the process of managing her career trajectory, and how she would love to sing Carmen.
“‘I feel strongly about Carmen,’ she says, ‘because I think I understand the character and the conflict. Carmen and all her associates are creative, liberal, colourful. They would be a Seattle, Washington, group of friends. While Don Jose is conservative, very Atlanta, Georgia,’ she says, laughing. ‘So they are oil and water. There is a stock character that people go to, which makes sense in a lot of ways, but for me the character is not dependent upon a size and look. I think a body-positive Carmen is right up the alley of what people should be thinking of and it’s something I’d love to be a part of.’”
San Francisco Chronicle Hails Jamie Barton's Work Speaking Out for Women
“Jamie Barton has an obvious affinity for strong, confident and outspoken women — both on and off the operatic stage. Perhaps that’s because, well, she’s one herself.” The American mezzo talks with Joshua Kosman about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Carmen, and other fierce feminist role models.
July 29, 2019
““Jamie Barton has an obvious affinity for strong, confident and outspoken women — both on and off the operatic stage. Perhaps that’s because, well, she’s one herself.””
The “extravagantly gifted American mezzo-soprano” Jamie Barton spoke with Chronicle critic Joshua Kosman in a wide-ranging interview addressing all things fierce and feminist.
“I wouldn’t mind finding a little more balance between life and career. I have what I call the rule of three when I’m looking at gigs, and an offer has to satisfy at least two of these three or it’s off the list. It has to be a location I want to go to, Carnegie Hall or San Francisco or something like that. It has to be a project that I am really interested in. Or it has to pay all of the money.”
In the meantime, Barton has her eye on some dream projects. She still hopes to get mandolinist and composer Chris Thile to write some music for her, and to accompany her in a program that also includes the lute songs of the Renaissance Englishman John Dowland.
And she wants to sing Carmen.
“I’d like to do something that celebrates people of all different shapes, sizes, colors — and I think that is who Carmen and her people are. Whereas Don José is leading a very conservative, very Birmingham, Ala., kind of existence. Now, I come from that world. I understand it. But also I am of the more colorful liberal world now, so I’ve got a specific understanding of who that character is — and quite honestly I think I could sing the snot out of it.”
Jamie Barton to Headline Last Night of The Proms
The American mezzo will be the featured performer in classical music’s biggest party.
April 17, 2019
““Charismatic American mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, whose lustrous voice has established her as one of the most exciting performers of her generation, joins Sakari Oramo and the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus to lead the musical celebrations that bring the world’s greatest classical music festival to a spectacular close.””
Georgia native Jamie Barton will close out the 2019 BBC Proms in a Last Night of The Proms spectacular on September 14 at London’s Royal Albert Hall.
One of classical music’s biggest nights of the year, the performance will be televised live across the globe. Details and tickets are available via BBC.
Photo by BreeAnne Clowdus
Jamie Barton Subject of Opera Magazine's 'People' Feature
“A complete singer with a once-in-a-generation voice, a born communicator, a deeply compassionate human being with so much to give to audiences – Jamie Barton is an artist whose time truly has come.” The American mezzo earns a six-page feature in the March 2019 issue of Opera.
February 15, 2019
““Jamie Barton may hail from Rome, Georgia, not Rome, Italy, but she possesses an exceptional affinity for Italian style. The lustrous-voiced mezzo-soprano shapes her legato in Bellini and Donizetti with superb elegance. Turning to Verdi, She effortlessly masters the toughest vocal demands, and her detailed textual communication yields an interpretative subtlety that Verdi’s mezzo roles seldom receive.””
Photo by Wilfried Hösl
American mezzo Jamie Barton is the subject of a six-page ‘People’ feature in the March issue of Opera Magazine (UK). Read the wide-ranging interview with this “complete singer with a once-in-a-generation voice” via Opera.
All Who Wander Wins 2018 BBC Music Magazine Vocal Award
“No one who has heard Jamie Barton in action is in any doubt about the American mezzo-soprano’s gifts. She boasts an expansive, robust vocal sound, tinged with richly varied colors, and she deploys it with a distinctive combination of heroic power and tender intimacy. So the splendors of her debut release don’t exactly come as a surprise. But that hardly diminishes the joy of listening to Barton’s expressive, full-throated performances.” Jamie Barton's debut solo album has won the Vocal Category of the 2018 BBC Music Magazine Awards.
April 6, 2018
““The long wait for Jamie Barton’s debut recital disc was worth every minute. Barton is wonderfully idiomatic in Dvořák and Sibelius, and she and her pianist give a performance of Mahler’s Rückert Lieder that is up there with the greatest.””
Jamie Barton's debut album, released on Delos Music, has won the 2018 BBC Music Magazine Vocal Award. Accompanied by pianist Brian Zeger, All Who Wander features lush, romantic melodies by Mahler, Dvorak, and Sibelius. All Who Wander was also nominated for an International Classical Music Award in the Vocal Recital category, and was one of six Solo Vocal albums shortlisted by Gramophone for their Classical Music Awards.
Photo courtesy of BBC Music Magazine
Jamie Barton's Debut Album Nominated for BBC Music Magazine Awards
"Some of the most beautiful recordings I have ever heard. Anyone who loves the human voice should own this." All Who Wander is up for a BBC Music Magazine Award in the Vocal category.
January 25, 2018
Jamie Barton's debut album, released on Delos Music, has been nominated for a BBC Music Magazine Award in the Vocal category for 2018. Voting is open until February 19 at www.classical-music.com/awards.
All Who Wander has also been nominated for an International Classical Music Award in the Vocal Recital category, and was one of six Solo Vocal albums shortlisted by Gramophone for their Classical Music Awards.
Accompanied by pianist Brian Zeger, All Who Wander features lush, romantic melodies by Mahler, Dvorak, and Sibelius.
““Jamie Barton seems now to be the equal of any dramatic mezzo before the public. The great element which has enabled her rise to stardom is, of course, her voice-large, rich, fully controlled. She is one of the few singers who can delight an audience simply by the sheer beauty of her voice. Nowhere is this beauty more evident than here.
She and Zeger communicate exactly the proper mood of each song, whether boisterous and fun-loving or quiet and reflective. Barton produces some exquisite soft singing, with amazingly steady sustained tones [and] she emphasizes the drama of the situation with great variations in dynamics, from her beautiful soft singing to exciting forte passages.
But it is the opening section of Mahler songs that makes this recording stand alone – Ms. Barton’s glorious sound reinforcing the emotions surely felt by any sensitive listener. These are some of the most beautiful recordings I have ever heard. Anyone who loves the human voice should own this.””
All Who Wander Receives Award Nominations
"It’s the sort of instrument you could listen to all day, in any sort of repertoire." Jamie Barton's debut album receives recognition from the International Classical Music Awards and Gramophone Classical Music Awards.
November 28, 2017
““The voice is rich, generous and vibrant, big but beautifully controlled, impeccably smooth throughout its range. It’s the sort of instrument you could listen to all day, in any sort of repertoire. This really is an exciting talent, and a terrific disc.””
Jamie Barton's debut album, released on Delos Music, is receiving recognition from the International Classical Music Awards and Gramophone Classical Music Awards.
All Who Wander is one of six Solo Vocal albums shortlisted by Gramophone for their Classical Music Awards. It has also been nominated for an International Classical Music Award in the Vocal Recital category.
Accompanied by pianist Brian Zeger, All Who Wander features lush, romantic melodies by Mahler, Dvorak, and Sibelius.
Photo by Fay Fox
Read reviews:
"The voice is rich, generous and vibrant, big but beautifully controlled, impeccably smooth throughout its range. It’s the sort of instrument you could listen to all day, in any sort of repertoire. This really is an exciting talent, and a terrific disc."
Gramophone
"Barton’s grand and rich voice is perhaps as big as Flagstad’s, Farrell, and Nilsson’s, with tone as beautiful and unforced as the first two singers’. Its compass extends from the bottom of the mezzo range to an easy, room-shaking high C. But as easily as Barton can envelop you with sound, she can also grab you by the gut, and propel you deep into the emotional heart of music’s great mysteries. It is the emotional depth of Barton’s artistry that sets her apart from other singers blessed with exceptional voices. She has the power to render you breathless and at her mercy. I expect that you, too, will marvel at how, as Barton expands her voice to huge proportions, her sound and heart also expand to encompass every emotion of a woman lost in memories of a great, lost love."
Stereophile
“Jamie Barton has one of the great voices in the world today. Sumptuous, flexible, and capable of light and shade, her sizeable mezzo pours forth seamlessly. Barton’s voice at full cry is thrilling to behold but the majesty of her instrument never overwhelms the songs. Her ability to lighten her tone, especially in the tricky upper middle voice, notably allows her to sing with expressive freedom. All Who Wander is everything a song recital should be. Delivering both familiar and unfamiliar fare in beguiling interpretations, Barton and Zeger take the listener into the world of each song with deft musicality and emotional sincerity.”
Parterre Box
“A rising star, Barton seems as comfortable on the concert platform as the opera stage. In these art-songs admirable throughout is Barton’s alluring tone and gorgeous phrasing. My highlight is Mahler’s magnificent Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen, a multi-faceted score full of world-weary introspection. In this intensely melancholic writing, Barton communicates a real sense of yearning to moving effect, which felt extremely spiritual. The text that aches with emotion in Um Mitternacht (At midnight) is enchantingly sung, maintaining an intense expression that adds to the dream-like quality of the writing and concludes with a sense of resignation.”
Music Web International
"Barton is the most important American mezzo-soprano since Stephanie Blythe, another phenomenon capable of singing everything, and very well. Instead of Bellini’s Adalgisa and Wagner’s Fricka, which are her calling cards on opera stages around the world, the singer opted for a more intimate and very demanding repertoire. Barton has been given a voice and that abundance of means could betray her; fortunately those fears are unfounded. Her instrument is a column of generous, opulent sound that dominates to the point of allowing her to completely abandon herself to the chosen material in order to concentrate on the interpretation."
El Nuevo Herald
"We listened to All Who Wander on a rainy afternoon in London; Barton’s singing is just as much a warm hug on a cold day as it is a refreshing breeze in the heat.”
Schmopera
"Barton’s voice is delicate throughout, a sound that the audiences are not accustomed to hearing in the opera house where her potent mezzo soprano exhilarates with its brilliance and forwardness."
Opera Wire
"Perhaps the song on the record which encapsulates best what Barton can do is Sibelius’ “Säv, säv, susa”. She conveys its arched structure from repose to violence and back again with real conviction, and the final long vowels are unbelievable.”
The Arts Desk
"She is emphatically her own artist. All Who Wander is a testament to Barton’s artistic individuality—and, equally importantly, to the depths of her talent. No, the Twenty-First Century has given us no Flagstad or Callas, but what a gift we have been given in Jamie Barton."
Voix des Arts
Corinne Winters's 2017 Traviata Trifecta
"Opera is alive, and exists only from the downbeat until the curtain falls." The soprano sings Verdi's tragic heroine in productions at Seattle Opera, San Diego Opera, and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden this season.
February 7, 2017
This season, soprano Corinne Winters sings Verdi's doomed La traviata in debuts at Seattle Opera and San Diego Opera, and in her return to the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.
Winters, who considers Violetta her life's work, spoke with Bachtrack, Opera Sense, and Opera Wire about her signature roles, major house debuts, and why she identifies with the titular courtesan.
For performance dates, visit www.corinnewinters.com.
Photo by Fay Fox
Jamie Barton Is The Cover Story in Opera News Magazine
"Jamie Barton channels her mezzo superpowers" and lands on the cover of the January 2017 issue!
December 15, 2016
“Jamie Barton’s voice is a vast, enveloping sound, the sort of thing soprano Carol Vaness calls “a voice that blankets.” This is true whether she is offering a Dvorák song in recital or holding the stage as Waltraute. But nowhere was it more in evidence than at the Glimmerglass Festival last summer. After her opening group of Turina songs, the heavens opened, and a major storm pelted the roof. Returning to the stage for a group of Ives songs, Barton merrily chirped, “Hi! It’s raining!” (It is hard to think of a singer readier than Barton to smile in a lieder recital or giggle offstage.) She then proceeded to override the storm with her voice, never losing quality of sound and never giving the slightest sign that she might be at her limits.”
Jamie Barton "channels her mezzo superpowers" and lands on the cover of Opera News magazine's January 2017 issue!
Jamie Barton Receives Raves on U.S./U.K. Tour
"She brought enormous power, rich colours and perfect intonation to the vocal line. This was highly emotional and yet beautifully restrained singing that really got beneath the skin of the music.” Jamie Barton's recent recital tour with pianist James Baillieu was 'ecstatically acclaimed' by audiences and critics alike.
October 23, 2016
“Barton has an excellent technique, evenly spanning a cavernous lower register and a gleaming top; her breath control is apparently effortless, she sings perfectly in tune. There’s something of Marilyn Horne about the silver sheen and focus of the tone, but the voice is bigger and broader than Horne’s, and more than capable of firing the big guns demanded by Verdi and Wagner. She is also a born communicator, smiley and chatty and radiating infectious pleasure in the glorious noise she makes.”
Jamie Barton's recital tour with pianist James Baillieu has been met with raves around the United States and United Kingdom, culminating in what The Telegraph dubbed an 'ecstatically acclaimed' Wigmore Hall debut in London.
Read more reviews:
"Although winners of the prestigious BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition have recently shown an alarming tendency to vanish without trace, the 2013 laureate Jamie Barton is clearly here to stay."
The Telegraph
“I remember watching Jamie Barton’s performances during the Cardiff Singer of the World competition in 2013 and I was impressed with the amazing consistency she demonstrated through a wide range of repertoire. In Barton’s Wigmore Hall début, her operatic credentials were fully on display and she brought enormous power, rich colours and perfect intonation to the vocal line. This was highly emotional and yet beautifully restrained singing that really got beneath the skin of the music.”
Seen and Heard International
“Mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton and pianist James Baillieu certainly know how to begin a recital at Wigmore Hall, filling it with the warm, bold sounds of Joaquín Turina's Homenaje a Lope de Vega. Unrestrained, yet without sacrificing beauty of sound...their picks of Brahms Lieder, Dvořák's Gypsy Songs, and sets by Charles Ives and Jean Sibelius all seemed to give Barton the room her voice craves (and suited Baillieu's grounded, symphonic sound at the piano); yet they never missed an opportunity for subtlety. She...conjured up a real world of American warmth, with tight hugs and loud conversations. It's notable that Barton never stepped into the world of opera for this recital - though it would have been a sure hit if she had. It's exciting when a singer has enough tools and expertise at her disposal, and still earns ovations without the slam-dunk of a Verdi aria.”
Schmopera
“American mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton has a wonderful, characterful voice, with apparently effortless and even tone production and control. She seems to be able to spin out a quiet phrase – and just hold it forever. The fascination of witnessing Jamie Barton develop as a singer of the song repertoire promises to be a fascinating journey.”
The Arts Desk
Jamie Barton to Release First Solo Album on 11/11/16
All Who Wander features songs of Mahler, Dvořák and Sibelius, accompanied by pianist Brian Zeger.
October 19, 2016
Hailed by Alex Ross in The New Yorker as a “once in a generation talent,” mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton shares her deep appreciation for the art song repertoire, a cornerstone of her career, in her solo recording debut.
To be released by Delos Music on November 11, 2016, and featuring pianist Brian Zeger, All Who Wander includes selections by Gustav Mahler, Antonín Dvořák, and Jean Sibelius that speak to an adventurer’s spirit – savoring and reckoning with all of life’s experiences.
“All Who Wander is inspired by something that lives within all of us – the desire to step out of our ordinary lives, or society’s rules, and explore the world,” Barton said. “These songs share personal memories and thoughts, but the emotions they express are universal.”
Corinne Winters Makes Much-Anticipated ROH Debut
"'Come scoglio' (Like a rock) applied rather more correctly to Winters’ singing technique than to Fiordiligi’s constancy.” Winters makes her Covent Garden debut as Fiordiligi in a new production of Mozart's Così fan tutte.
September 22, 2016
“A great actor, Winters had a regal calmness about her, which suited the gorgeous, rich warmth in her sound. Her ‘Per pietà’ was phenomenal, paced beautifully; she always found room for her best sound, and still she had lovely agility saved for the end. Winters negotiated extraordinarily long lines in a slower-than-necessary quintet. [Her] singing is top-notch, full of style and individuality…”
Photo by Stephen Cummiskey
Corinne Winters makes her much-anticipated Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut in her adopted hometown as Fiordiligi in a new Jan Philipp Gloger production of Mozart's Così fan tutte.
Conducted by Semyon Bychkov, the production also stars Angela Brower, Alessio Arduini, and Daniel Behle. The production will be simulcast in cinemas around the world on October 17, with future showings throughout the season.
Read more reviews:
“Winters has a very pretty soprano voice, with warmth, real character and not a hint of wobble: her Act I aria “Come scoglio” (Like a rock) applied rather more correctly to Winters’ singing technique than to Fiordiligi’s constancy.”
Bachtrack
“This success is no doubt also down to a shining cast: Corinne Winters’s rich-toned Fiordiligi…”
The Stage
"Corinne Winters is superb in Fiordiligi’s famous aria “Per pieta” as she falls in love with the man who in real life is her sister’s fiance."
Daily Express
“Corinne Winters’s superbly conflicted Fiordiligi and Angela Brower’s more easy-going Dorabella — are well aware that they are falling for each other’s men.”
The Times
“Così is nothing if not an ensemble piece, and this cast is unusually well-matched vocally. Even so, there are standouts in the shape of Daniel Behle’s volatile Ferrando, and in the sheer spirit with which Corinne Winters’s by that point almost suicidally troubled Fiordiligi attacks every note of Per Pietà.”
The Guardian
“Winters is a splendid tormented Fiordiligi and sings her two highpoint arias with panache.”
Plays to See
“Winters’ Fiordiligi is indeed as ‘steady as a rock’ vocally: she has a bright, ringing top and she agilely leapt through ‘Come scoglio’.”
Opera Today
“American Corinne Winters was an indecisive Fiordiligi with a warm and beautiful soprano. She was particularly good in the arias ‘Come scoglio’ and ‘Per pietà’, delivered with touching sensitivity and sadness. Fantastic.”
Fanáticos da Opera
“Probably the best sung Così that I have ever seen. With American soprano Corinne Winters glorious as Fiordiligi…it produces a wonderful evening.”
Daily Express
“When Fiordiligi (Corinne Winters) pours out her torment in “Per pietà” and then succumbs to the rapture of forbidden love in the duet “Fra gli amplessi”, it’s clear Mozart isn’t being ironic but the staging doesn’t quite support this emotional truth. With her impressively weighty voice, Winters isn’t perhaps an ideal Fiordiligi, but she has a thrilling stage presence and offers an intriguing and detailed performance.”
Blouin Art Info
“As the two with the most stage time, Dorabella (Brower) and Fiordiligi (Winters) have the most daunting of vocal tasks. But carry it they do, with Winters’ mastery of melisma and technical delivery being particularly noteworthy. This is a young cast, but one that carries the mantle of Mozart’s great work without strain.”
Exeunt Magazine
“Three performances stand out in particular, and the first is that of Corinne Winters as Fiordiligi. This may be her Royal Opera debut, but she seems totally at ease as she ensures that ‘Per pietà, ben mio, perdona’ becomes a definite highlight of the evening. Her voice is extremely rounded so that the high notes almost do not seem to be because they feel so rich and full.”
musicOMH
“Both Corinne Winters and Angela Brower give delightful accounts of the young women. Winters in particular sings a Fiordiligi of rare range and beauty, with surprisingly strong mezzo notes as well as a radiant upper range.”
What’s On Stage
Jamie Barton Makes Acclaimed Royal Opera House Covent Garden Debut
"Jamie Barton is a first-rate Fenena." Barton joined operatic legend Plácido Domingo on BP Big Screens around the U.K. and smaller screens around the globe via a Royal Opera House YouTube live stream.
June 9, 2016
Photo by Catherine Ashmore for Royal Opera House
This month, mezzo Jamie Barton made her Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut as Fenena in Verdi's Nabucco, opposite Plácido Domingo in the title role.
The second performance was shown via live, free outdoor relays as part of the BP Big Screens initiative, and was watched by fans around the world via the ROH YouTube live stream.
The cast also stars Liudmyla Monastyrska, John Relyea, and Leonardo Capalbo. Conducted by Maurizio Benini, performances run through June 25. Tickets are available on the Royal Opera House site.
Domingo, Monastyrska, and Barton will also appear in the Metropolitan Opera 2016/17 production of Nabucco, conducted by James Levine.
Read reviews:
"Jamie Barton is a first-rate Fenena."
The Guardian
"Jamie Barton as Fenena reveals a rich and full mezzo-soprano that is also capable of displaying great sensitivity."
musicOMH
“Making her Royal Opera debut as Nabucco’s true daughter, the American mezzo uncovered a good deal more in Fenena, impressing with her warmth and richness of tone matched by a purposeful line and convincing dramatic engagement.”
Opera
"I wish the score had provided more opportunities for the young lovers Ismael and Fenena – what little Jean-François Borras and Jamie Barton did as Ismaele and Fenena was very fine."
The Telegraph
"Jamie Barton made a promising Covent Garden début as Fenena, showing good timbre and nice control of line. Fenena and Ismaile are considerably lesser roles than the other three, but Barton and Jean-François Borras made a good fist of them, particularly effective in ensemble."
BachTrack
"Jamie Barton and stand-in tenor Jean-François Borras play lovers Fenena and Ismaele; the former in beautiful voice…"
Londonist
"Making her debut with the Royal Opera, American mezzo Jamie Barton seizes her lyrical opportunities as Nabucco’s true offspring Fenena."
The Stage
“Monastyrska’s Abagaille had a worthy rival for once. Admittedly Fenena is a sketchy role: Verdi had not yet fully realized the value of contrasting or opposing females, the structure that grounds Trovatore or Aida. But this Fenena was Cardiff Singer of the World in 2013 and the winner of last year’s Richard Tucker Award, the redoubtable Jamie Barton in her Royal Opera debut. This was luxury casting indeed, affording the extraordinary pleasure of watching and listening as, in the finale of the first act, each ‘sister’ anchored opposite sides of the stage and soared over the ensemble.”
Opera
Amanda Majeski Returns to Glyndebourne
“Amanda Majeski made the best Eva I have heard in years, true of pitch and pure of tone, comfortable in all reaches of the part and emotionally persuasive from beginning to end." Majeski returns to the rolling hills of Glyndebourne as Eva in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.
May 25, 2016
Photo by Tristram Kenton
““Amanda Majeski’s ravishingly sung Eva radiates disembodied beauty.” THE INDEPENDENT”
Soprano Amanda Majeski returned to the Glyndebourne Festival as Eva in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, opposite Gerald Finley as Hans Sachs.
The handsome David McVicar production, in which Majeski had previously starred at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, also features Michael Schade, Jochen Kupfer, Alastair Miles, David Portillo, and Hanna Hipp.
Performances run through June 27; tickets can be purchased via the Glyndebourne site.
Read reviews:
“Amanda Majeski made the best Eva I have heard in years, true of pitch and pure of tone, comfortable in all reaches of the part and emotionally persuasive from beginning (fidgeting in the church pew) to end (despair at Walther’s initial rejection of the Guild). The radiant B flat with which she crowned the quintet was perfection.”
Opera Magazine
"Amanda Majeski’s ravishingly sung Eva radiates disembodied beauty under the cobbler-poet Sachs’s benediction."
The Independent
"Amanda Majeski is a lovely, silvery-voiced Eva."
Financial Times
"Amanda Majeski (Eva) and Hanna Hipp (Magdalene) both demonstrated those qualities [passion and ardor] abundantly towards Walther and David as the respective objects of their romantic affections; indeed, vocally, they were very similar in tone and excellence."
Classical Source
"Majeski’s voice has an inhaled ease to it, blooming with no obvious strain or overwork."
The Arts Desk
"Amanda Majeski’s Eva fulfilled most of the promise which she had shown as the Countess in the 2013 Le nozze di Figaro, her touching intonation and unaffected stage presence ideal for Wagner’s ‘little Ev’chen’."
musicOMH
"The American soprano Amanda Majeski was Eva. Reminiscent of Gundula Janowitz, she launched the quintet exquisitely and looked very pretty to boot."
The Telegraph
Corinne Winters Talks Iconic Heroines, Health, and Writing with Schmopera
Ahead of her Opernhaus Zürich debut as Mélisande in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande, Corinne Winters talks with Schmopera about playing those coveted roles, her offstage creative outlets, and how she stays happy and healthy on the road.
April 25, 2016
Ahead of her Opernhaus Zürich debut as Mélisande in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande, Corinne Winters talks with Schmopera about playing those coveted roles, her offstage creative outlets, and how she stays happy and healthy on the road.
"I can relate to all of these iconic heroines (and this is probably why they're iconic!): Desdemona loves bad boys, Mimì is a practical girl with an artistic soul, Tatiana is a bookish romantic, and Donna Anna is a Daddy's girl. That pretty much sums me up! In all seriousness, I think it's the performer's job to be true to the source material while still portraying the contrast and humanity of a character. I vow never, ever to play an archetype.
I don't find that the process changes based on the role, but rather the cast and team. Each production is its own living, breathing entity, and the team dynamic really sets the tone for the process. I love that I can never go on autopilot – I'm forced to stay present with how the process unfolds in that particular moment."
Jamie Barton Talks Wagner & Bluegrass with Schmopera
Ahead of her Washington National Opera debut as Waltraute/2nd Norn in Götterdämmerung, Jamie Barton talks with Schmopera about her goal to bridge the gap between the art form she does on a daily basis with the art form she grew up loving.
April 12, 2016
Ahead of her Washington National Opera debut as Waltraute/2nd Norn in Götterdämmerung, Jamie Barton talks with Schmopera about Wagner, bluegrass, and her goal to bridge the gap between the art form she grew up loving and the art form she now does on a daily basis.
Barton grew up on a farm, surrounded not by classical music, but by Bluegrass. "That's kind of where I think I got an ear for virtuosic music. I absolutely still love it," she says, enthusiastically. "If I'm ever listening to Bluegrass then I'm probably missing home a little bit." She's a big fan of Chris Thile's music, and his collaborations with the Punch Brothers. "It is everything from Brandenburg Concertos to their own music which sounds at times very traditionalist for Bluegrass, and then at other times," she chuckles, "like Schoenberg had a baby with Earl Scruggs."
Corinne Winters to Bookend Her 2016/17 Season at Royal Opera House
Corinne Winters will make her ROH Covent Garden debut as Fiordiligi in a new production of Così fan tutte in the fall and return in the summer in her signature role of Violetta in La traviata.
April 6, 2016
Corinne Winters will open her 2016/17 season with her Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut this fall as Fiordiligi in a new Jan Philipp Gloger production of Mozart's Così fan tutte.
She will return to close out her season as Violetta in the beloved Richard Eyre production of La traviata, marking her first London Violetta since her explosion onto the international opera scene in the 2013 English National Opera production.
Così fan tutte performances will run September 22 – October 19, 2016, and will also feature Angela Brower as Dorabella, Daniel Behle as Ferrando, and Alessio Arduini as Guglielmo. The October 17 performance will be screened live in cinemas in over 35 countries.
Winters will appear in La traviata June 27 – July 4, 2017, alongside Atalla Ayan as Alfredo and George Petean as Germont. The July 4 performance will be featured as a live, free relay to several outdoor screens as part of BP Big Screens.
Tickets for both productions will be available via the Royal Opera House website.