Kallen's Reviews!

Here are exerpts from Kallen's reviews taken from Opera News. I've included the date and the opera and role she was singing.

March 27, 1993 "Kallen Esperian made an enchanting Luisa; in lovely voice, the American soprano found exactly the mixture of innocence and courage, splendidly partnered by tenor Neil Shicoff's ardent Rodolfo, also in magnificent voice. Their death scene, spread over several levels of the set, proved extremely effective." (Luisa in Luisa Miller)

May, 1995 "Kallen Esperian made a lovely Leonora. Though restrained at the beginning, she took on the character fully by the end of Act I, and her voice, with its warm low tones and bell-like high register, rang clear, even in pianissimos." (Leonora in Il Trovatore)

December 20, 1997 "In her first attempt at the title role, Kallen Esperian's sweet, soft-grained soprano lacked the metal to command the ear, though she sang intelligently and managed to sound as fresh in the final moments as when she began. She delivered her opening recitative with authority but lightened "Casta Diva" to the point of trivializing the music. Once past that hurdle, she increased dramatic and vocal intensity, building to a climactic scene with Pollione that had a more authentic ring. The evening's best moments were the priestess' duets with Adalgisa, portrayed by Phyllis Pancella, whose mezzo had an edge that made her timbre more distinctive, if less sheerly beautiful, than Esperian's." (Norma in Norma)

Personal comment from Kurt Youngmann (Oct. 1999) - "Kallen Esperian was an absolute joy, singing and acting beautifully! (To say nothing of being gorgeous to look at. No wonder Sir John has impure thoughts about Ms Ford). Having seen some great Alices in the past (Tebaldi, Kabaivanska and Daniels for examples) I must say that Ms Esperian takes a back seat to none of them. A lovely voice, clear as a bell, and a charming performance." (Alice Ford in Falstaff)

Personal comment from Andrew Byrne (May 2000) - "More important for art, Kallen Esperian as Desdemona was simply wonderful. I could write a page on her performance." (Desdemona in Otello)

Personal comment from Charles Handelman (May 2000) - "This was my first time hearing Kallen Esperian, and she possesses one of the most beautiful, gleaming, expressive spinto soprano voices in my listening experience. The voice just floods the theatre with seamless tones and she is so beautiful to watch... So why no recordings??? Another colossal blunder by record companies." (Desdemona in Otello)

Go see a review of a Covent Garden "Otello" with Kallen as Desdemona: Click Here!