"Hanna-Liisa Kirchin was een voortreffelijke Flora, van haar zou ik wat meer willen horen." (Hanna-Liisa Kirchin was an excellent Flora - from her I would like to hear more.)
"ORFEO ED EURIDICE" - LONGBOROUGH FESTIVAL OPERA 2017
"Her voice is fascinating: sweet and powerful, it had a plangent, matte finish that really did make her sound like something between a countertenor and a more conventional mezzo. In a role originally written for a castrato, and embodying a figure from myth, it was simultaneously strange and wonderfully fitting – heightened by the grace with which Kirchin walked the line between classical dignity and raw, wrenching pain."
"Hanna-Liisa Kirchin brings human nobility and ardour as Orfeo in lamenting the death of Euridice, which does not relent either as he undergoes the trial of leading her out of Hades whilst attempting to avoid the temptation of turning around to her, or in his final triumph."
"Hanna-Liisa Kirchin sang with heart on her sleeve emotion to carry the opera as Orfeo ... her ‘Che farò senza Euridice? was the grief-stricken highlight it must be."
"As the mythic quester, Hanna-Liisa Kirchin displayed a mezzo which is not huge but which is sweet-toned and expressive. Interestingly, my guest remarked that at first he was uncertain whether Orfeo was being sung by a countertenor or a mezzo, for Kirchin’s voice does have an unusual colour - one which was most effective in a role initially taken by the castrato Gaetano Guadagni... Kirchin worked hard in ‘Che farò senza Euridice’: her voicing of loss was dignified and imbued with wrenching pain..."
"...and with a superb central performance as Orfeo movingly sung and acted by mezzo Hanna-Liisa Kirchin who clearly has a stellar career ahead of her. Her openings cries of “Euridice” were so beautifully sung and controlled that you knew immediately you were in the presence of a completely reliable talent both vocally and dramatically. Orfeo is a central and demanding role and Kirchin never flagged."
"The aria, which was disputed for a long time as being an interpolation but which George Solti and Marilyn Horne, among others, helped prove was actually by Gluck, was delivered with such panache and dramatic exuberance that the spectators were buzzing with excitement about Kirchin’s vocal qualities as they left the auditorium."
"... the steadiness and control of Hanna-Liisa Kirchin’s singing hinted at the essential constancy within the character’s core, summed up best by Kirchin in her sensitive delivery of ‘Mi lusinga il dolce affetto"...
"The standard of singing was, as always, excellent, but one singer was quite outstanding – Hanna-Liisa Kirchin, a former Jette-Parker finalist, as Ruggiero. (I note that Ruggiero was sung by a castrato in the original 1735 production). Kirchin brings out the contradictions in Ruggiero’s character as a lover (literally) spellbound by Alcina (Seguo Cupido), whose heart is torn between the enchantress and Bradamante (Mi lusinga il dolce effetto) but who eventually recognises, albeit reluctantly, that the island’s beauty will soon fade (Verdi prati). The role has some wonderfully expressive arias and Hanna-Liisa Kirchin rose to the occasion with a performance that was both musically and emotionally of the highest order."
• • • • • • • • • • • "... the most lustrous voice on stage... belonged to her love-slave Ruggiero, sung with glowing expression by Hanna-Liisa Kirchin.... Kirchin has a compelling stage presence...."
• • • • • • • • • • • "...in the trouser role of Ruggiero, Alcina’s latest flame, Hanna-Liisa Kirchin proved Handel’s characters are no show birds, but grown-up characters with grown-up emotions."
'IL MATRIMONIO SEGRETO' - DUTCH NATIONAL OPERA/REISOPERA/OPERA ZUID 2016
"Not at all the matron which one so often hears in this type of role, mezzo-soprano Hanna-Liisa Kirchin is, in spite of her wig and skirts with panniers, a sexy and coquettish Fidalma with an appealing timbre."
"...their aunt Fidalma was hilariously played by Hanna-Liisa Kirchin. With her the trio of ladies was perfectly cast."
Peter Franken - operamagazine.nl (Translated from Dutch)
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"Hanna-Liisa Kirchin is very strong as an acting character. On top of that this student from Nelly Miricioiu has a brave, bold voice that deserves the highest praise."
Peter van der Lint - Trouw de Verdieping (Translated from Dutch)
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Media surrounding the world premiere of Nigel Osborne's Bosnian Voices, with the Liverpool Philharmonic 10/10 Ensemble.
'The college's current two stars....mezzo-soprano Hanna-Liisa Kirchin (Masha), justified all the high hopes they have encouraged in recent months. Kirchin has progressed with every appearance she has made - sheer hard work, now rewarded.'
Michael Kennedy - Paradise Moscow Review, Opera Magazine
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'...the Yorkshire accent and of course superb vocals of Hanna-Liisa Kirchin..'
Robert Beale - Paradise Moscow Review, Manchester Theatre Awards
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"Hanna-Liisa was the more impressive Serse, singing this trouser-role as the loverlorn king with an abandon I had not heard from her before and gaining confidence in her own ability as one great aria (such as 'Piu che penso') followed another."
Michael Kennedy - Xerxes RNCM 2012 review (Opera Magazine)
"The two occupants of the title role - Hanna-Liisa Kirchin and Heather Ireson - were both highly accomplished performances, with the technical demands of the piece at their fingertips and sustaining the vocal power the role demands."
Robert Beale - Xerxes RNCM 2012 review (Manchester Theatre Awards)
"Hanna-Liisa Kirchin sang the testing title role with magnificent technical resource and sustained beauty..."
Robert Beale - Xerxes RNCM 2012 review (Manchester Evening News)
"The music is wonderful – all very jolly and jaunty, in Handel’s best style – and the three principal characters – Xerxes (Hanna-Liisa Kirchin), Arsamene (Sophie Goldrick) and Romilda (Aimee Toshney) – are given enough arias to make their feelings known. It’s an absolute pleasure, all the singing. "