Tucker Award-Winner Ailyn Perez to Make U.S. Solo Recital Debut 12/17 at the Kimmel Center

December 17 marks a major career milestone for Ailyn Pérez, the "lyric soprano who truly seems to have it all" (Opera News), when she makes her U.S. solo professional recital debut at Philadelphia's KimMel Center. Joined by "superb" pianist Ken Noda (New York Times), the Richard Tucker and Plácido Domingo Award-winner will perform arias from Manon and songs by Reynaldo Hahn, Manuel De Falla, and Fernando Obradors - all of which are featured on her recent, celebrated Opus Arte album debut, Poème d'un jour - together with signature arias from La traviata and Le nozze di Figaro. Presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, the event represents something of a homecoming for the American soprano, for it was at Philadelphia's Academy of Vocal Arts that she first launched her career.

When it was released this past April on the Opus Arte label, Poème d'un jour met with critical acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic, being named a WQXR "Album of the Week" and scoring a five-star review in Britain's Independent. In Hahn's songs, the UK's Guardian found Pérez "breathtaking"; in de Falla's, the Sunday Times of London declared that "she rival[ed] de los Angeles." Similarly, International Record Review marveled:

"Every so often, a singer comes along who completely bowls you over. ... Pérez is completely at home in the Spanish songs in her recital, applying lush, chocolate tones to the material. ... The singer most frequently brought to mind...is Victoria de los Angeles."

Recorded live, the soprano's arias from Massenet's Manon were pronounced "delicious" by the Sunday Times and "corkers" by the Independent, while Opera News explained that they "show the soprano at her best - lively, engaging, sparkling with color and vocal personality. ... Her luminous natural vocal color is enchanting."

The operatic arias with which Pérez rounds out her upcoming recital program showcase two of the roles in which she enjoys especial success. As Mozart's Countess, the Chicago Tribune admired her "showstopping 'Dove sono,' all floating pianissimos and diminuendos and delicate pathos, that roused the sold-out crowd to a long, well-deserved ovation." Likewise, the UK's Observer judged her "an ideal Violetta," adding: "The bewitching young American soprano puts her heart into every twist of the drama. ... Her performance was glorious, the quiet passages magical."

Following her solo recital, in the new year the soprano looks forward to reprising her signature portrayal of Verdi's ill-fated heroine in high-profile productions of La traviata in Munich, London, and San Francisco. At both Covent Garden and San Francisco Opera, she will be partnered by her real-life husband and fellow Tucker Award-winner, tenor Stephen Costello, as Alfredo; the Associated Press dubs the couple "America's fastest-rising husband-and-wife opera stars" and Vanity Fair considers theirs "a match made in verismo heaven."

Earlier this month, the two graced "a dream team of opera singers" (New York Times) at a special Richard Tucker Gala at Avery Fisher Hall, to celebrate the legendary American tenor's centennial. The performance will be broadcast nationally on PBS's Live From Lincoln Center on January 10. According to the New York Times,

"Pérez gave a tastefully restrained rendition of Charpentier's 'Depuis le jour,' from Louise, in which subtle changes in intensity created a watercolor-like effect. In a deliciously comic scene with her husband and fellow Tucker Prize recipient, Stephen Costello, she showed her sassy side, as Norina played hard to get in 'Esulti pur la barbara' from L'elisir d'amore. Each revealed a perfect grasp of comic timing in acting and singing."

Full details of Ailyn Pérez's upcoming U.S. solo professional recital debut are provided below, and more information is available at the soprano's web site: ailynperez.com.

Ailyn Pérez: upcoming engagements:

Dec 17
Philadelphia, PA
KimMel Center (Perelman Theater)
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society
Solo recital (U.S. solo professional recital debut)

Program:

Mozart: "E Susanna non vien...Dove sono" from Le nozze di Figaro

Hahn: Four songs

De Falla: Seven songs

Verdi: "E strano...Ah fors'é lui...Sempre libera" from La traviata

Obradors: Six songs

Massenet: "Je marche...Obéissons (Gavotte)" from Manon

Dec 31; Jan 3 & 6
Munich, Germany
Bavarian State Opera
Verdi: La traviata (Violetta)

Jan 31; Feb 4
London, England
Royal Opera House
Massenet: Manon (Manon Lescaut)

Feb 17, 20, 25 & 28; March 4, 7 & 10
London, England
Royal Opera House
Puccini: Turandot (Liù)

May 6, 9, 12, 17 & 20
London, England
Royal Opera House
Verdi: La traviata (Violetta)

May 24 & 29; June 1
Hamburg, Germany
Hamburg State Opera
Verdi: Rigoletto (Gilda)

July 5, 8, 11 & 13
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco Opera
Verdi: La traviata (Violetta)

Follow Perez on Facebook www.facebook.com/AilynPerezSoprano and Twitter www.twitter.com/AilynPerez1.