Extracts from Le Nozze di Figaro
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightement / cond. Robin Ticciati
“Claire Rutter imbued the Countess's two arias with passionate elegance”
Neil Fisher, The Times, April 2008
“Claire Rutter (made) a vital and captivating contribution…In the Countess's arias "Porgi amor" and "Dove sono" Rutter delivered a riveting performance. These were not merely disembodied operatic highlights, but ones that distilled and embraced all the emotional feeling and theatrical context that goes with them.”
Geoffrey Norris, The Daily Telegraph, April 2008
Title role in Verdi's Aida
English National Opera / cond. Edward Gardner / dir. Jo Davies
"Above all, though, the evening was a triumph for Claire Rutter as Aida. This was a performance of international quality in a role that has proved a stumbling block for the great and the good of sopranos over the decades. But Rutter didn't drop a single stitch. She dominated the ensembles with her shining top, she phrased with unfailing musicality, and she floated the high ledger lines of that treacherous lament for her homeland in Act III with deceptive ease. Equally impressive was her farewell to life in the final scene."
Edward Seckerson, The Independent, November 2007
"Claire Rutter has a gorgeous high pianissimo and a lovely rounded tone."
Warwick Thompson, Bloomberg.com, November 2007
"Two singers are particularly outstanding; Claire Rutter who sings the title role for the first time and does so with total commitment and an unfailingly lovely tone."
Opera Today, November 2007
"Claire Rutter in the title role is beautifully secure and blazingly intense."
Tim Ashley, The Guardian, November 2007
"What lifted the heart was some ravishing singing from Claire Rutter in the title role. By the Nile Scene she had struck top form, producing a fluent line and golden tone which would grace any Opera House in the world!"
Rupert Christensen, The Daily Telegraph, November 2007
"Claire Rutter is an appealing Aida" (sweetly poignant in the upper register, firm of purpose lower down.")
Barry Millington, The Evening Standard, November 2007
"The outstanding performance was, fittingly, Claire Rutter. Her poignant Aida thrilled powerfully to the eves, particularly soaring in the upper register."
Caroline Kellett Fraysse, Times Literary Supplement, November 2007
Howell Hymnus Paradisi
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra / cond. David Hill / Naxos
"Hill's new version with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Bach Choir is welcome, above all for the solo contribution of Claire Rutter."
Financial Times, May 2007
Orff Carmina Burana
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra / cond. Marin Alsop / Naxos
"The soloists are classy - Clare Rutter is a sensuous voice of love."
Rick Jones, The Times, March 2007
Donna Anna in Mozart Don Giovanni
Opéra National du Rhin / cond. Jane Glover / dir. Achim Freyer
"Claire Rutter (Donna Anna) was sensationally accomplished, with dizzy decorations in 'Or sai chi l'onore' and a sweet-toothed agile account of 'Non mi dir'."
Rodney Milnes, Opera, June 2006
Abigaille in Verdi Nabucco (concert performance)
Opera North / cond. David Parry
"Claire Rutter revealed the inner warmth which mitigates Abigaille's jealousy and resentment."
David Blewitt , Opera Now, March/April 2006
“Claire Rutter made a huge impression as Abigaille, stepping in as a late replacement. It was not just that she shone above the stave, though everything there was beautifully in place; the lower register sounded firmly integrated too, avoiding any macho chestiness. Hers was a gutsy performance, steely and determined straight from the seat of the emotions: we needed no acting to understand this ambitious, double-edged character.”
Rian Evans, Opera, December 2005
“Claire Rutter was outstanding as the scheming Abigaille, singing with a variety of tone and colour that reflected the current point of view of the character. A touch of steel, a little coquettishness and an immense presence were the hallmarks of a terrific performance.”
John Byrne, Musical Opinion, November 2005
“Claire Rutter replaced the carded Sue Patterson as Abigaille. This role, with its demands for flexibility in high tessitura and strong declamatory passages in the lower voice can be a killer. Miss Rutter’s colour and strength in her lower registers was a revelation and matched by her freedom and flexibility at the top of the voice. She managed the fiendish descent in Abigaille’s aria and cabaletta at the start of part two with aplomb and without any obvious gear change in the chest register. If Claire Rutter is on Chandos’ upcoming recording, enthusiasts of opera in English will have much to look forward to.”
Robert J Farr, Seen and Heard Opera Review, October 2005
“Claire Rutter’s Abigaille is electrifying.”
Anna Picard, The Independent on Sunday, September 2005
“…But the most sensational showing was Claire Rutter as Abigaille. Rutter’s ability to span the gamut of emotion, from spite to ambition, guilt to greed, triumphalism to despair, was a lesson in gorgeous delivery. She glories in top range, and excels in all else. Knockout.”
Roderic Dunnett, The Independent, September 2005
“Rutter – all gobsmacking coloratura, neurotic fury and defensive hauteur – gives the performance of a lifetime.”
Tim Ashley, The Guardian, September 2005
Opera gala at Birmingham Symphony Hall
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / cond. Mikhail Agrest
“ "Sempre libera" was the obvious crowd-pleaser, with its radiant tone and gloriously focussed coloratura detail, but it was Elvira's Act One meditation from Ernani that fully exploited Rutter's vocal and dramatic range. "Pace, pace" from La Forza showed off her fabulous voice at its most thrillingly powerful, while "Merce, dilette" (I Vespri Siciliani) delightfully displayed her soubrettish qualities.”
David Hart, Birmingham Post, October 2005
“Soprano Claire Rutter quickly won over the audience of opera lovers at Birmingham's Symphony Hall. Her superb singing voice resounded around the hall's magnificent accoustics as she performed a repertoire plundering Verdi's operas. She wrung our hearts with the desperate "Pace, pace, mio dio" from La Forza del destino and wavered between happiness and despair in "Ah! Fors'e lui...Sempre libera" from La Traviata.”
Diane Parkes, Birmingham Mail, October 2005
Orpah in BerkeleyRuth
City of London Sinfonia / cond. Richard Hickox / Chandos
“Claire Rutter uses the tight, tricky intervals of the exposed, high-lying “Ah, must I leave thee?” to express the difficulty of Orpah’s decision to abandon her mother-in-law and return to Moab.”
Joanne Sydney Lessner, Opera News, September 2005
Giovanna in Verdi Giovanna d’Arco
Chelsea Opera Group / cond. Dominic Wheeler
“A brief word in praise of Chelsea Opera Group’s invigorating concert performance of Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco. In the leading roles, Claire Rutter and Peter Auty produced singing of a class that would have graced Covent Garden.”
Rupert Christiansen, The Daily Telegraph, June 2005
“Verdi’s seventh opera is “a work of brilliant patches”; and the most brilliant of all is the role of Giovanna herself. Rutter rose to the occasion. Her first, cunningly delayed, appearance is revealed by the gentle finger of dawn illuminating her voice, as she ponders her call to take up arms for France. Already Rutter’s formidable range tracked her through troubled thoughts, and her fine rhythmic precision energized the expression of her inner struggle. Act I gives Giovanna a Rossinian aria, “O fatidica foresta”, in which she continues to wrestle with her feelings: cue for the bronzed, dark underside of Rutter’s soprano to shine through, before setting off on a grand duet with her beloved Carlo.”
Hilary Finch, The Times, June 2005
Amelia in Verdi Un ballo in maschera
Florida Grand Opera / cond. Alberto Veronesi / dir. Sandra Bernhard
“The evening was rescued by Claire Rutter’s Amelia, whose gleaming vocalism and affecting presence pulled the performance out of the doldrums. The English soprano registered Amelia’s violently conflicted emotions with dramatic power and nuanced expression; her tender, desperate plea to Renato, “Morro, ma prima in grazia”, was a beautiful, deeply felt piece of staging.”
Lawrence A. Johnson, South Florida Sun Sentinel, May 2005
Title role in Puccini Tosca
English National Opera
“The last two performances are worth catching for Claire Rutter's feisty performance of the jealous diva. Rutter sings cleanly with exciting top Cs and flamboyant Italian fervour. If the ENO's management had any sense, it would sign up Rutter on the spot for all the big Italian spinto roles.“
Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, April 2004
“Claire Rutter sings the title role with impressively Italianate lustre and confidence.”
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, March 2004
“The main interest is Claire Rutter’s potent arrival in the title role – a glorious voice!”
Anthony Holden, The Observer on Sunday, March 2004
“The evening is worthwhile, most of all for Claire Rutter in the title role: ENO may be short of big voices, but Rutter is up to the part with everything required. She is a presentable actress with plenty of temperament and a glinting top.”
John Allison, The Times, March 2004
“Claire Rutter sings the role of Tosca and does so with thrilling top notes and a commanding stage presence.”
Michael Kennedy, Sunday Telegraph, March 2004
“Claire Rutter, the most exciting young soprano at ENO recently.”
Hugh Canning, The Times Culture, February 2004
Violetta in Verdi La Traviata
Den Norske Opera
“Claire Rutter as Violetta lets her versatile soprano express desperation, happiness and love in desperate cascades. With a soprano like Claire Rutter in the lead, there is no reason to doubt that opera can reach to the very depths of the heart of its audience. Rutter's magnificent performance makes the hairs stand up on the neck of the most hardened audience member. She never performs the opera as a set of arias, but as a set of emotions, a story that needs to be told, not ‘performed’. Claire Rutter’s performance alone is worth a visit to the Opera.”
Dagsavisen, Norway, April 2003
“Claire Rutter as Violetta acted and sang to the delight of our hearts. She demonstrated a balanced mix of vocal integrity, dramatic integrity and experience in characterization.”
Aftenposten, Norway, April 2003
“Claire Rutter's Violetta grows from a slightly uptight courtesan into a fully alive woman with wonderfully vivid expressivity towards the end. Her singing gets greater and greater for each aria up to the death scene, which is worth the price of the ticket on its own.”
VG, Norway, April 2003
Amelia in Verdi Un Ballo in Maschera
English National Opera
“Claire Rutter was a hugely impressive Amelia. The role is a killer, but she made light of its difficulties, singing with firm, bright tone and riding the ensembles effortlessly. Absolutely thrilling.”
The Times, February 2002
“That aria was delivered with scorching accomplishment by Claire Rutter - bags of intensity rising to a whopping high C. She alone here truly grasped the Verdi style.”
The Independent, February 2002
“Vocally, this is Claire Rutter's show. Her Amelia is powerful, generous, rich in colour and completely thrilling.”
Evening Standard, February 2002
Violetta in Verdi La Traviata
Scottish Opera
“Then there is Claire Rutter as Violetta. I am nervous about saying how wonderful she is lest vultures from wealthier operatic climes fly down and snatch her away. Her soprano is voluminous - it is no surprise that she will sing Amelia in Masked Ball for English National Opera next year - but amazingly agile: she flings off the first-act coloratura with both ease and variety of dynamic, capping it all with a sustained top E flat. Rutter attacks Violetta's big moments with a power that standard lyric sopranos cannot muster, but she can also refine her huge sound down to a most delicate and expressive piano. Purely vocally, she is a complete Violetta. Nor is she far off it dramatically, plumbing depths of anger, resignation and despair. There is a refreshing lack of artifice: Traviata is a matter of life and death, and that is how Rutter feels it and plays it.”
Rodney Milnes, The Times, September 2001
Donna Anna in Mozart Don Giovanni
English National Opera
“Claire Rutter sang a Donna Anna that would have graced any opera house in the world.”
The Sunday Telegraph, June 2001
“The best performances come from Claire Rutter - deranged, intense and vocally accurate as Anna.”
The Guardian, June 2001
Title role in Ponchielli La Gioconda
Opera North
“The true laurels went to Claire Rutter in the title role. Hers is a powerful instrument, with hints of more still to come. Even more vital, she has about her a charisma that commands attention. She combined a degree of subtlety with splendid projection, and there was plenty in reserve for her closing "Suicidio!" aria, whose desperation was positively heroic.”
Opera, July 2000
“Claire Rutter... thrilling confidence and elan... a true prima donna... spine-tingling top notes...”
The Sunday Times, May 2000
“Claire Rutter's Gioconda is a thrilling piece of dramatic singing.”
The Sunday Telegraph, May 2000
“Here Claire Rutter's Gioconda bears a slight but uncanny resemblance to the great diva (Callas). Yet Rutter is her own singer, and rises to her taxing final scene magnificently; her soprano has the cutting edge this music needs, but never lapses into unpleasant tone...”
The Times, May 2000
“...her beautifully focused tone and limpid quality a constant joy...”
The Yorkshire Post, May 2000
“...stunning...huge success...impressive technical security and stylistic command...world class...”
The Daily Telegraph, May 2000
Gilda in Verdi Rigoletto
Welsh National Opera
“...the clear, fine sound of Claire Rutter's Gilda... Rutter's is not just a pretty voice, she can let rip and is not afraid to take risks...”
Opera, February 2000
Fiordiligi in Mozart Cosi fan Tutte
Scottish Opera
“Claire Rutter's Fiordiligi is in the world-beating class... Her “Come Scoglio” and “Per Pietà” were near to perfection.”
The Sunday Telegraph, February 1998
Gilda in Verdi Rigoletto
Scottish Opera
“Claire Rutter's Gilda is remarkably self-assured... her tone is rich & creamy...”
The Guardian, October 1997
Violetta in Verdi La Traviata
Scottish Opera
“What makes it unmissable is the gloriously sung Violetta of Claire Rutter... unquestionably the best British Violetta since Josephine Barstow.”
The Times, June 1996
“This Violetta is to die for.”
The Guardian, January 1996
“A great voice in early bloom.”
The Times, January 1996