Press Quotes
“What makes this evening is the sheer force and presence of Stilwell and Loach onstage.”
John Terauds, Toronto Star
“These two women not only know how to make music, they know how to connect with an audience.” John Terauds, Toronto Star
“Stilwell and Loach are two serious artists who leave nothing to chance.” John Terauds, Toronto Star
“wonderfully humorous and sophisticated” Polarprisca ArtsBlog
"the extreme strength, vivacity and intelligence of these two gorgeous and talented women ... time, indeed, for the world of opera to unzip its laced-up image" Dianne Wells, The Wholenote
"Jean and Patti’s musical connection is supported by a tremendous friendship, which makes this collaboration even more wonderful to observe. A good model for all singer/pianist relationships; when you find this irreplaceable musical partnership, hang on to it and don’t be afraid to look at your colleague every so often and say, without speaking….Ne me quitte pas." Mary Lou Vetere, Opera Today
"Performing in a bar-lounge where there are comings and goings through a show is the ultimate test of how well an artist can weave a musical spell and keep it from unravelling for an extended time. And these two veterans didn't let us down." John Terauds, Toronto Star
"What makes this evening is the sheer force and presence of Stilwell and Loach onstage.” John Terauds, Toronto Star
Press quotes specific to Patti Loach
"One more observation last night was on the quality of Loach's playing. This was show music rendered with a grace, subtlety and craft that could put many an art song or opera pianist to shame." John Terauds, Musical Toronto, October 2012
"To observe pianist Patti Loach in concert as an accompanist to performers such as Jean Stilwell, Lindsay Sutherland Boal, or, these days, Brad Hampton, is to witness a woman at the top of her powers. Her playing is precise and spirited and her presence - with buzzing energy in a thin frame, and wiry blonde hair that threatens to explode - often belies her role as a 'mere' background performer." Don Wall, Forever Young News, May 2013
"Pianist Patti Loach... creates music to illustrate any and all moods... thoughtful and passionately performed." Drea Rowsome, Fab Magazine, October 2012
"Pianist Patti Loach's home kitchen is a metaphor for her life: open, inviting, eclectic, and dominated by a Steinway semi-concert grand piano". John Terauds, Musical Toronto, October 2013
“Loach is a chameleon of the keyboard, playing brilliantly in so many different styles I sometimes feel she should be checked out for multiple personality disorder.” Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star
“Her hands deftly occupied with providing the sparkling musical accompaniment, Loach is the more sophisticated older woman.” Anya Wassenberg, Culture Maven Blog
“Patti Loach never missed a beat or mood swing.” John Terauds, Toronto Star
“Loach is a miniature blonde with a personality as oversized as her prized Steinway piano.” Deirdre Kelly, Globe and Mail
Press quotes specific to Jean Stilwell
“Jean Stilwell .... not just a beautiful voice, but an instrument for truthful and articulate expression" Ken Winters, The Globe and Mail
“Honesty infuses work of Jean Stilwell - mezzo soprano. When asked, "Is there any common thread that holds such a diverse career together?", Stilwell laughs. "If there's an idea out there that sounds interesting, I'll jump on it. But it has to be something that resonates with me. It has to be something that feels honest." Colin Eatock, Houston Chronicle, May 2011
"As the femme fatale Carmen, this charismatic singer has been praised for her mesmerizing stage presence and dangerous sounding, husky mezzo ... vocally rich and powerful." The Globe and Mail
“Stilwell isn't exactly the traditional image of an opera diva. With spiky hair, tattoos and an impish sense of humour, Stilwell is a larger-than-life personality that one could easily imagine singing torch songs in Weimar-era Germany.” Edmonton Journal
"Jean Stilwell ... smoldering magnetism" The Globe and Mail
“Certainly, the most convincing portrayal came from Jean Stilwell as Jenny. Her vivid rendition of ‘Pirate Jenny’ demonstrated all too clearly what had been, to that point in the performance, so sorely missing: someone who could sell a song.” The Columbus Dispatch
“…in her company debut (in the title role of Carmen) Jean Stilwell’s intelligent performance was smoothly delivered and well-focused vocally.” The New York Times
“Jean Stilwell shines as a angry avant-garde Carmen. Stilwell, who shifted with subtle ease between the vivacious and the emotionally fragile, gave a touch of the chanteuse to the Habanera and an even lighter touch to the Seguedilla.” The Toronto Star
“It was Jean Stilwell (in the title role - The Rape of Lucretia) who held the stage every time she was on it. Looking every bit the chaste, beautiful, ultimately suicidal woman, Stilwell’s sense of her character was so complete, one almost overlooked the haunting lyrical singing.” The Edmonton Journal
“What an amazing artist she is (as Prince Orlowsky in Die Fledermaus). It seems that every role she takes, she makes it so her own, one can hardly imagine anyone else ever doing it but her.” The Hamilton Spectator
“Canadian mezzo-soprano Jean Stilwell was engaging as Eboli, particularly in her Act III aria, in which she tests the credulity of the audience by cursing her own good looks.” The Gazette (Montreal)
“Jean Stilwell made an indelible impression as Maddalena, both in her brief, wordless scenes in Act I and in her dealings with the Duke in Act III.” Tulsa World
“The statuesque Stilwell (in the Verdi Requiem) has a burnished voice that floats effortlessly through the entire mezzo range. The passages where she sings in octave unison with soprano Feubel produced a sound that was unearthly, that is to say heavenly.” Sunday Free Press (Winnipeg)
“Jean Stilwell, whom we saw and heard here in a magnificent Carmen at the Quebec Opera, performed this strange and fascinating composition in which numerous quotes from the works of Schumann were to be found…Without eclipsing the memory that the great Maureen Forester left of this creation, Jean Stilwell interpreted its pages with conviction and the vocal means to render justice to the text.” Le Soleil (Quebec City)
“Jean Stilwell and Janice Taylor are superb in their contralto roles…Stilwell, her voice glowing as usual with a lithe and unmistakable sensuousness.” (in Mahler’s Symphony No. 8) The Vancouver Sun
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