Not yet forty and now in the second decade of her career, the Latvian mezzo has established herself as one of the most gratifying performers on the opera stage today, leaving an indelible stamp on characters ranging from Carmen and Charlotte to Sesto in Clemenza, bel canto heroines such as Angelina, Rosina and Giovanna Seymour to Strauss’s Octavian.

“Garanča easily projects virility and positions the notes, whatever their register, like a darts player hitting the bull’s-eye.”

“[Garanča] sings with rich sound, an unerring feel for the nuance and subtext of a phrase, and alluring sensuality. The clarity in her singing makes this Carmen seem intelligent and wily.”

“It’s a marvel to see the virtuosic ease with which Elīna Garanča almost casually sails over the hurdles of the material: Never at the limit, and always smiling as she expertly sings, as if it were nothing.”