Rachel Kelly

Mezzo-soprano

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“Kelly’s vocal agility and bright, well-centred tone enabled her to create a thrilling portrayal.”
(Opera Magazine, July 2016)

Rachel Kelly is a graduate of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden’s Jette Parker Young Artist Programme where she attracted considerable attention for her portrayals of Zaida (Il turco in Italia) conducted by Evelino Pidò, Javotte (Manon) conducted by Emmanuel Villaume, Mercédès (Carmen) conducted by Alexander Joel, and Pisana (I due Foscari) conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano. Her performance as Mirinda in Kasper Holten’s L’Ormindo conducted by Christian Curnyn was singled out by Opera Today for its “rich sensuality of voice” and “glowing warmth”, and she earned unanimous praise for Proserpina (Orfeo) at London’s Roundhouse.

Current season highlights include Isolier (Le Comte Ory) with both Opéra de Rennes and Opéra de Rouen Normandie and she makes her debut at Teatro Real in the roles of L’Eternità and Giunone in Cavalli’s La Calisto, conducted by Ivor Bolton. She returns to the Ulster Orchestra for a performance of Mozart’s Requiem, makes her debut with the Münchner Rundfunkorchester in performances of Rossini’s Sigismondo and gives a solo recital at Wexford Festival Opera.

Recent opera highlights include Idamante (Idomeneo) for Opera di Firenze, Annio (La clemenza di Tito) for Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with Northern Ireland Opera, and Dorabella (Cosi fan tutte) for Glyndebourne on Tour. She has also appeared as Medarse (Siroe) for Nationale Reisopera, Nerone (Agrippina) with the Irish Chamber Orchestra under Jonathan Cohen, Sesto (Giulio Cesare) with Christian Curnyn and the Early Opera Company, and she made her Glyndebourne Festival Opera debut as Annio (La clemenza di Tito).

In concert Rachel has appeared as Virtue (The Choice of Hercules) at the Internationale Händel-Festspiele Göttingen under Laurence Cummings, she joined Orchestre de Chambre de Paris under Christopher Franklin as Teresa (La sonnambula) at Paris’ Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, and she’s sung the role of Marguerite (La damnation de Faust) as part of the Leeds International Concert Season. She has appeared with the Ulster Orchestra under Jac van Steen, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra under Matthew Halls, with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra under Laurence Equilbey and with CBSO and Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla as Idamantes in concert performances of Mozart’s Idomeneo.

Gallery

Strauss: Sein Wir Wieder Gut © Rachel Kelly

Rossini: Non più mesta (La Cenerentola) © ROH

Mozart: La clemenza di Tito - Parto, Parto © Rachel Kelly

“Above all, the mezzo-soprano Rachel Kelly and soprano Susanna Hurrell, singing the title roles of the children lost in the forest, were unbeatable: credible, touching, and terrific actors and singers who know when to stop.”

(The Guardian, June 2019)

“Believable children from grown-up opera singers are a must, and glamorous Rachel Kelly’s transformation into a feisty boy is utterly convincing; she’s also the most sheerly lustrous singer of the evening.”

(Artsdesk, June 2019)

“Rachel Kelly performed the double role of L’eternita/Giunone with a dark, powerful voice and delicate vocal line.”

(Operawire, 29 March 2019)

“Mezzo-soprano Rachel Kelly, stepping in at a very late stage, was a mellifluous Marguerite with the Halle”

(***** The Telegraph, March 2019)

“There’s humanity and warmth in her voice and an artful way of story-telling in the ‘King of thule’ ballad, with rich expression in her ‘D’amour l’ardente flamme’ aria in the final part”

(***** The Arts Desk, March 2019)

“[Kelly] duetting limpidly with viola and cor anglais soloist in her “Roi de Thule” ballad and the ravishing D’amour l’ardente flamme, and sensuously with her tenor in their love scene”

(Sunday Times, March 2019)

“the solo vocal performances were compelling: Rachel Kelly’s Marguerite, driven wild with love and shame”

(***** The Times, February 2019)

“Stepping in at very short notice … Kelly sang with delicate elegance and unwavering beauty of sound, most of all in an exquisitely gentle ballad about the King of Thule”

(Bachtrack, February 2019)

“Rachel Kelly’s sparky Sesto”

(Hugh Canning, Opera Magazine, June 2018)

“Rachel Kelly in the role of Isabella was absolutely perfect. She has it all; good looks, intelligent acting, a solid vocal technique and a memorable voice…Kelly’s voice has an impressively broad range and she not only moves effortless from the high pitches to the lowest notes, but she – rather unusually – seemed to deliver her best in both of those extremes; her top notes did not lose, but amplify, her voice’s velvety quality, while you were left to admire the depth of her lower notes, especially surprising at her young age and within such a slender frame.”

(Bachtrack, June 2018)

“Rachel Kelly makes light work of the coloratura in her debut in the title role.”

(Irish Examiner, June 2018)

“the tender, light-voiced Rachel Kelly as the object of [Faust’s] lust, Marguerite…Kelly charmed and touched in her two big solos”

(Hugh Canning, The Times, May 2018)

“Siroe’s brother Medarse was performed by Rachel Kelly, who has a mature, beautifully polished mezzo.”

(Opera Gazet, January 2018)

“For the role of Siroe’s brother Medarse, they engaged the Irish mezzo-soprano Rachel Kelly. She sang the beautiful lines of her role with a full, smooth tone”

(Opera Magazine NL, January 2018)

“Rachel Kelly’s bright, wide-eyed Dorabella…Kelly’s winningly sly Dorabella — vocally reminiscent of Ann Murray’s — was the perfect foil”

(Hugh Canning, Opera Magazine, December 2017)

“As Dorabella, Irish mezzo Rachel Kelly glowed with a warmth expressive of the younger sister’s impulsive, passionate nature. The full, rich tone of her Act 2 confession of indiscretion, ‘È amore un ladroncello’ (Love is a little thief), was winningly honest.”

(Opera Today, November 2017)

“the mezzo Rachel Kelly was a marvellously vengeful Sesto (Giulio Cesare).”

(Opera Magazine, November 2017)

“Rachel Kelly sang a delicious Dorabella, radiating honeyed warmth”

(Bachtrack, October 2017)

“But then there’s Rachel Kelly, who plays her sister Dorabella with irresistible charm and openness, singing beautifully”

(The Guardian, October 2017)

“Rachel Kelly was a vibrant Giunone. Entering midway through Act 2, she immediately made her vengeful presence felt, her mezzo glinting darkly with outraged dignity as she transformed Calisto into a bear.”

(Opera Magazine, February 2017)

“Rachel Kelly channels Donna Elvira’s anxious vulnerability through her sensitive mezzo-soprano.”

(Guardian, George Hall, November 2016)

“Rachel Kelly as Donna Elvira furiously charges across the stage, her bright and agile mezzo-soprano effectively conveying both drama and private pain. Her rendition of Elvira’s lovesick solo was touching”

(Bachtrack, November 2016)

“her way of tempering her clear, high mezzo with subtle vocal shading – for example, when launching the quartet ‘Andrò ramingo e solo’ with heroic determination tapering off to youthful uncertainty – was highly imaginative.”

(Opera Magazine, December 2016)

“Rachel Kelly as a flirtatious Nancy”

(Opera magazine, October 2016)

“There’s a bright, focused depth to Rachel Kelly’s mezzo – splendidly demonstrated in Classical Opera’s superbly-cast performance earlier this season of Jommelli’s Il Vologeso – which suggests boundless reserves, and she lent emotion weight to Semiramide’s charming pastorale.”

(Arts Desk, September 2016)

“mezzo-soprano Rachel Kelly, whose Idamante was consistently sharply focused.”

(Irish Times, August 2016)

“Ilia and Rachel Kelly as Idamante were expressive, evenly matched voices that produced some of the finest duets of the evening.”

(Irish Examiner, August 2016)

“The mezzo-soprano Rachel Kelly, as the eponymous hero, was the only one of the soloists not relying on the score, and her first bravura aria was spirited and exciting. Kelly’s vocal agility and bright, well-centred tone enabled her to create a thrilling portrayal.”

(Opera Magazine, July 2016)

“Rachel Kelly, a total natural with a vibrant mezzo voice seemingly flawless throughout the range…Kelly made her urgency felt, persuading us with natural body language as well as focused urgency that the recitatives are as crucial a part of the drama as the arias and finales.”

(Arts Desk, May 2016)

“Her bravura aria “Invan Minacci” displayed an heroic, bright upper register and agile runs, while her long crescendo on the first syllable of “lasciami” in “Cara, deh serbami” gradually bled warmth into her voice – a nuanced, dramatic portrayal.”

(Bachtrack, May 2016)

“Rachel Kelly, who has the most lyrical music in the piece, is both an affecting stage presence and technically excellent”

(Seen & Heard, February 2016)