“Garanča’s voice has been described as “creamy,” “silken,” and “lustrous” (her chest register is superbly produced) but it also has a surprisingly rounded maturity. What sets her apart, however, is the unteachable ability to send shivers down the spine and make grown men salivate.”
“Garanča has the edge. Her mezzo is stunningly impressive. Rising effortlessly to notes that would stretch many a soprano, it descends evenly throughout the compass, avoiding any unseemly changes of register.”
“It’s this versatility that makes Elīna’s voice so special and impossible to pigeonhole – she has the richness and depth of sound of a mezzo-soprano but also possesses all the top notes and an ability to “float” her voice that is the envy of many a bona fide soprano.”
“The Latvian mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča is the most convincing Carmen in a long time, and not just because of the way she hikes her skirts to stroke a naked thigh.… Today, we can read [Carmen] as a guerrilla in the gender wars, a martyr to personal freedom, a narcissistic virago, or just a self-destructive vamp.”
“Latvian mezzo Elīna Garanča has now won the hearts of the Viennese, and it would be hard to imagine a more perfect creation. Vocally, everything one could want is there in abundance. Absolute beauty of tone, flawless technique, passion and sensitivity to her colleagues are but a few hallmarks of this coltish, magnificent performance.”
“Dalila is like Carmen: There are so many clichés,’” Ms. Garanca said in her dressing room. “’Somehow Dalila is seen to be a calculating bitch who has just one goal, to destroy Samson. But I think that she is a very normal woman, who also has feelings.”
“It’s been a long time since we’ve experienced a young artist who takes such great delight in singing.”
“Garanča lets us forget her predecessors in the role in a heartbeat. It is only her — and the role fits like a glove. Probably the best interpreter of the role since the legendary days of the young Agnes Baltsa.”
“WQXR’s Annie Bergen hosts and evening of performance and conversation around Elīna’s performances as Dalila at the Metropolitan Opera and concert at Carnegie Hall.”
“After seeing Elīna Garanča as Carmen, it truly seems as if she has staked a claim on the role for years to come. Not only is her vocal delivery supple, yet powerful, but her sensuality, physical freedom and sense of woman-as-destroyer are unmatched.”