REVIEWS
Masterpieces of Russian Vocal Music: Enchanted Evening of Vocal & Piano Duets at La Maison Française at The Embassy of France
"Soprano Lori Phillips and mezzo-soprano Mary Phillips, twin sisters who have been critically acclaimed in opera houses and on concert stages both here and abroad, had performed together just once before until this concert, giving this recital an unusual distinction. From the first two songs, Mikhail Glinka’s “How Sweet It Is to Be with You” and “You Won’t Come Again,” their ease of production and harmonic convergence were evident. Both singers displayed a dramatic soprano’s range and a burnished tonal brilliance, while amiably anticipating each other’s cues and facilitating their entrances. Closing the first half of the program, Arensky’s “Violet” (op. 29, no. 3) offered the rare pleasure of hearing both singers sustain the same high note in unison, the sound gloriously ringing and rounded, followed by Aleksandr Gretchaninov’s “Day Dreams,” in which first Lori, then Mary hit a climactic top note with stunning clarity and thrilling richness. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Angel and Demon” (op. 52, no. 4), the two sopranos/spirits pulled it off with masterful persuasiveness, each of them equally determined to convince the listener of her own (character’s) superiority. To conclude the program, Lori and Mary Phillips (with Danchenko-Stern at the piano) offered three duets by Tchaikovsky. First came the soothing and poetic “Lisa and Polina Duet” (lyrics by Pushkin) from his opera Queen of Spades, which the three musicians gave a harmonious rendering. The song “Tears” (op. 46, no. 3) was among the composer’s “favorite offspring.” The Phillips sister’s voices’ timbre, like that of two impeccably tuned instruments were seamlessly bowed, played one mood, that of impassioned sorrow. The fusion reached apotheosis with the final song, “Passion Has Fled,” the dramatic intensity heightening as each singer picked up the narrative from the other—“Everything that is not boring is false”—“Everything that is not you is colorless and dead”—the two voices increasingly indistinguishable; in the end, a vocally turbo-charged twin engine emitting a single, searing sound. They were, of course, two: just as there were two superbly complementary and coordinating pianists who, while not blood relatives, seemed to similarly sense and experience each other not just musically, but kinetically and artistically. It doesn’t get much better than that."
Leslie Weisman, D.C. Metro Arts - December 11, 2016
Senta in Der fliegender Holländer with Victorian Opera
"American soprano Lori Phillips sings the role of Senta with steely intensity, colouring the drama with a luscious, full-bodied sound. Phillips keeps her facial and expressions pared back, focusing all expression through her voice. Playing a young woman who is unhealthily obsessed with a ghostly legend, Phillips avoids histrionics and melodrama, maintaining a demure, introverted feminine presence."
Simon Parris - February 15, 2015
"American soprano Lori Phillips was a first-rate Senta, with a beauteous tone and clear diction." Michael Shmith, The Sydney Morning Herald - February 15, 2015
"American soprano Lori Phillips was a convincing Senta, delivering her famous ballad with the familiarity of someone sharing every twist and turn of the unfortunate Dutchman's fate, while never doubting her capacity to save him. Her scenes with the despairing Erik, and then with the Dutchman in their duet of hope and promise, were gripping."
Peter Bassett, Limelight Magazine - February 16, 2015
Clytemnestra in The Oresteia of Aeschylus - University of Michigan Symphony/ Naxos
"Soprano Lori Phillips as Clytemnestra is consistently outstanding…beautifully in tune with the chorus, and outlining the general thrust of where the work is, musically, to take us."
International Record Review - November, 2014
"It is…an intriguing document—and with a cast including Lori Phillips, Brenda Rae, Tamara Mumford, Sidney Outlaw, and Julianna Di Giacomo, gets, on this lone outing, an impressive performance." Anne Midgette, he Washington Post- November, 2014
"…soprano Lori Phillips sings Clytemnestra splendidly."
Roger Knox, The Whole Note - December, 2014
Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana - Amarillo Opera
"Amarillo Opera's season opened with a staging of Cavalleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci, a double-bill featuring strong performances by guest artists like the divine Lori Phillips (Santuzza in Cavalleria) and Raul Melo (Turiddo and Canio in the respective operas). Though Pagliacci is the more well-known, I far preferred Cavalleria – both for its melodramatic bombast and for Phillips' star turn."
Globe News Amarillo - October 6, 2014
Senta in Der fliegender Holländer - Arizona Opera
"Dramatic soprano Lori Phillips made her Met début with Senta in 2010. Vocally, she rides the orchestra with no hint of strain, and tones it all down, with lyrical and well-controlled pianissimos when required. As an experienced Wagnerian, she brings commanding presence and the most persuasive sense of line in her "Ballad." Phillips creditably portrays the impassioned fulfillment of the young woman's dream and the shedding of her useless existence. Her Senta is introspective, neurotic, and powerful without sacrificing femininity."
Concertonet.com - November, 2013
"A powerful Senta, Lori Phillips' bright sound energized the text and made her rendition exciting. She is just beginning to emerge as a true dramatic soprano but she is already singing with a distinctively colored sound. It has been many years since a soprano brought as much exhilaration to this role as Phillips did on Saturday night."
Opera Today - November 19, 2013
Senta in Der fliegender Holländer - Michigan Opera Theater
"Soprano Lori Phillips, as Senta, ...debuted with a bang....she's the real deal: a Wagnerian soprano with herculean lungs who also knows how to project subtlety when it's needed, as she did in her second act Ballad."
Detroit News - October 20, 2013
"The Flying Dutchman is a vocally challenging opera-although soprano Lori Phillips, who plays Senta, made it seem like a walk in the park on opening night…Phillips' dramatic vibrato and incredible range are the ear candy of the second and third acts."
Detroit Morning Sun - October 20, 2013
"Lori Phillips as Senta ...offered plenty of gutsy power...."
Detroit Free Press - October 20, 2013
Brünnhilde in Mini-RING - Minnesota Concert Opera
"As Brünnhilde, Lori Phillips had a soprano that soared easily through the heights of the role. She successfully conveyed the character's transition from goddess to woman, and her rage at being betrayed by Siegfried was a dramatic highlight."
Minneapolis Star Tribune - September 14, 2013
"Lori Phillips recently garnered raves in Seattle Opera's RING while filling in for Brünnhilde and proved why here, her spine-tingling voice imbued with power and subtlety."
Pioneer Press - September 14, 2013
Brünnhilde in Götterdämmerung - Seattle Opera
"Lori Phillips, sang the last two evenings of the first cycle. Her singing showed remarkable security and, especially in the immolation scene, good upper-register power." Mark Mandel - Opera News - August 2013
"Lori Phillips, who stepped in for a still-indisposed Alwyn Mellor in the role of Brünnhilde, was in excellent voice, pouring out high notes of thrilling quality and exhibiting a graceful ease throughout her middle register. Both principals (with Stefan Vinke as Siegfried) are persuasive, savvy actors, a particularly vital element in this theatrically exciting staging by Stephen Wadsworth."
Melinda Bargreen - Seattle Times - August 10, 2013
"Lori Phillips stepped in once again, and that in turn meant that between her and tenor Stefan Vinke, this performance boasted the single best Brünnfried combo the Stephen Wadsworth production has yet witnessed. Phillips sure seems like the real deal. She's got a big, tireless voice with enough color and clarity to do more than simply ride out the assignment; she brought pathos and emotional transparency to Act 2 and her Immolations scene was a forceful and canny response to the scene's challenges."
Joshua Kosma - San Francisco Chronicle - Aug. 19, 2013
Brünnhilde in Siegfried - Seattle Opera
"When Seattle Opera general director Speight Jenkins stepped on to the stage just before the last act of Siegfried, the grateful audience erupted in applause. How nice! He came out for a curtain call! In their enthusiasm the listeners had forgotten that almost the only reason a general director takes the stage is to deliver bad news: In this case, the cancellation of Alwyn Mellor (as Brünnhilde), who had awakened with an allergy attack that morning and could not sing. (Jenkins later said he had waited until the last act of Siegfried, the only act in which Brünnhilde sings, for the announcement so that the audience wouldn’t be thinking about the cast change during the two preceding acts.)
As it happened, the replacement singer was Lori Phillips, a company regular who opened last season in the title role of Turandot... she did an excellent job of both singing and acting on Wednesday evening. Her voice is powerful and resonant, her stage presence unaffected and convincing."
Melinda Bargreen - Seattle Times - August 9, 2013
"Wednesday's performance brought another equally memorable thrill, which was soprano Lori Phillips' full-throated and beautifully expressive Brünnhilde. Phillips gave a superb performance, marked by throaty, richly colored vocalism and a wonderfully focused theatrical demeanor." Joshua Kosman - San Francisco Chronicle - Aug. 9, 2013
Turandot in Turandot - Seattle Opera
"The star on opening night was Lori Phillips in the title role. Her thrilling soprano cut through the orchestral maelstrom with magisterial ease. She played the man-hating princess with steely hauteur, and she looked great, especially in her Klimt-ish gown for the closing scene."
Bernard Jacobson - Seattle Times - August 6, 2012
Aida in Aida - Hawaii Opera Theatre
"Soprano Lori Phillips as Aida and mezzo-soprano Mary Phillips as Amneris made a compelling pair, and their voices matched in strength, expression, and even somewhat in timbre. Their characters moved through HOT's production as paired opposites: one loved, one scored; one in power, one enslaved; veiled in white in triumph, veiled in black in loss; Aida steadfast, Amneris chameleon-like in opulent new robes in almost every scene...they gave stellar performances not to be missed." Ruth Bingham - Star-Advertiser, January 29, 2012
Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana - Arizona Opera
"Soprano Lori Phillips, as Santuzza, was brilliant."
Dimitri Drobatschewsky - Opera Magazine, Oct. 1, 2011
"In "Cavalleria Rusticana," soprano Lori Phillips, making her second Arizona Opera appearance, showed off a great, big colorful voice full of nuance and drama as the distraught and neglected Santuzza. At her highest range, Phillips' voice swallowed the room with a powerful timbre that took your breath away."
Cathalena E. Burch - Arizona Daily Star, October 2, 2011
"Lori Phillips, Santuzza, the excommunicated, was passionate and strong...her voice and acting were superb."
Dr. Donald J. Behnke - Green Valley News (Tucson), Oct. 5, 2011
Turandot in Turandot - Opera Lyra Ottawa
"Opera Lyra had been able to hire a very impressive lead couple for their production. Lori Phillips sang a powerful Turandot." Alexander Neef, General Director of Canadian Opera Company - In His Own Words, September 14, 2010
"Turandot sung by soprano Lori Phillips was extremely moving. She transformed her frigid cruelty into pathetic cries of help. Phillips captured all the nuances of complex emotions which appear so modern. She dominates all of her scenes..."
Alvina Ruprecht - Ottawa Morning, CBC Radio, September 13, 2010
"Opera Lyra Ottawa's spectacular Turandot...[with] the impressive Lori Phillips as Turandot." Steve Mazey - Ottawa Citizen, September 13, 2010
"Miss Lori Phillips owns a vocal instrument which is hauntingly similar to Miss Nilsson in character, tone, and that indefinable quality known only to Miss Nilsson until now. Although reminiscent of Miss Nilsson, it is all Miss Phillips whom you instantly recognise as that voice. The clarion top at full volume which peels the paint off the walls where the nosebleed seats are situated, is like no other. There is not steeliness to this vocal instrument...but instead we find a lush, velvety, iridescent platinum gifted to the very few. The cleanest legato spun out virtually seamlessly throughout with negligible issue for Miss Phillips. If vocally Turandot offers few challenges to Miss Phillips, the role is notorious as a 'stand up and sing', with little call on acting. Nevertheless, the hatred and 'ice' of Turandot is made clear through the glaring visage of Miss Phillips. It did not matter where you sat in the theatre: you felt it. Miss Phillips spins out precisely who Turandot is through the air "In questa Reggia"." www.CommandOpera.com, September 14, 2010
Senta in Der Fliegende Holländer - The Metropolitan Opera
"Monday night's sailing of The Flying Dutchman at the Met marked the house debut of an impressive singer. Soprano Lori Phillips, substituting for an ill Deborah Voigt in the key role of Senta, sang the role with formidable power and passion.
Ms. Phillips is an American singer with a powerful, dramatic voice and good acting ability. She takes a different approach to the role, singing with more consistent volume throughout. And yet, she sings the notes accurately. Unlike Ms. Voigt, Ms. Phillips opened up the voice at the start of the Ballad, narrating the story of her ghostly obsession and sounding just slightly over the edge. Real romantic dementia set in with the arrival of Mr. Uusitalo. Their slow-building Act II duet rose to a mighty climax that foreshadowed the powerful third act.
"
Paul Pelkonen - www.super-conductor.blogspot.com
"Giving great pleasure, soprano Lori Phillips made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Senta. She sang with dramatic feeling and also an edge. We might wish for more color and nuance, but Phillips delivered an unusual sense of the beauty of Wagner's music. We should see more of her at the Met."
Susan Hall - Berkshire Fine Arts, May 4, 2010
Brünnhilde in Die Walküre - Hawaii Opera Theatre
"Soprano Lori Phillips was a terrific Brünnhilde: her voice started out in excellent form and kept getting better, her clarion upper register sending chills down one's spine"."
Ruth Bingham - Opera News, March, 2010
Senta in Der fliegende Holländer - Hawaii Opera Theatre
"Most spectacular was soprano Lori Phillips, with her huge voice, its rich colors and finely woven timbre ringing with luxurious warmth. Her voice dominated the stage, making Senta by far the strongest character. Her Act II ballad-riveting, spine-tingling proved a high point.'"
Opera News
Amelia in Un ballo in maschera - Seattle Opera
"Lori Phillips sang Amelia with the kind of urgency that brought life to her character. Her phrases were organic and her line long. This was exciting singing."
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"Phillips is an interesting singer, a powerful soprano..."
The Seattle Times
"As Amelia, the king's married love interest, Lori Phillips provided a full-voiced and rich reading of the part. Her top notes never faltered in some of Verdi's most emotional music - the Act 2 plea for her life. Her force and clarity earned cheers of brava."
Opera Magazine
Elisabeth in Don Carlo - Opera North-United Kingdom
"...delivered an absolutely spine-tingling `Tu; che le vanita..." Opera Magazine Tosca in Tosca - Utah Opera
"Phillips is a powerful but very lyrical soprano. she makes the most of Tosca's ever-changing emotions, and she's also a fine actress who is quite credible as the passionate diva. Her Act 2 aria, "Vissi d'arte, vissi d'amore," was an emotionally wrought and deeply felt interpretation. And in this aria, she reminded one of Maria Callas in her prime."
Edward Reiches - Deseret News
"Soprano Phillips Wins Over Audience With a Powerful 'Tosca': Her dramatic soprano voice and the urgency of her acting captured the opening night audience. The youthful Phillips played Tosca with more vulnerability than often seen, making the character's jealousy, naivete and self-absorption particularly vivid. Her parting shot "Scarpia, avanti a Dio!" was chilling."
Catherine Reese Newton - The Salt Lake Tribune
Turandot in Turandot - Nashville Opera
"As the villainous princess, Phillips sings with icy, regal splendor."
The Commercial Appeal
"Phillips in the title role, particularly in her "In questa reggia," set the tone [of the performance]. In this impossibly demanding part, which extracts everything from the soprano...Phillips answered the challenge."
The Tennessean
Senta in Der fliegende Holländer - Sarasota Opera
"Soprano Lori Phillipa, as Senta, has one of those phenomenal voices that chill the spine with its power and beauty of tone. Add to that, her intense stage presence, and the audience is completely riveted from the first note." Herald-Tribune Desdemona in Otello - Nashville Opera
"...soprano Lori Phillips as his wife possess two of the most potent instruments heard here in recent memory ...she was at her best in the celebrated "Willow Song" and touching "Ave Maria." These were gorgeously rendered..."
The Tennessean
Patience White in Patience and Sarah - Lincoln Center Festival
"As Patience, Lori Phillips gave an outstanding performance, negotiating the high notes exquisitely."
Opera News
"Ms. Phillips brought ardor and emotional vulnerability to her portrayal of Patience."
The New York Times
Anna in I Cavalieri di Ekebu - Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center
"...the radiant-voiced soprano Lori Phillips as Anna."
The New York Times
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