Reviews
FROM HER OPENING ORNATE ARIA, MAYA KHERANI’S PARTENOPE SAILED THROUGH HANDEL’S EFFUSIVE COLORATURA WITH GLEAMING PRECISION AND IMPASSIONED CONVICTION. SHE DOMINATED THIS PRODUCTION THE SAME WAY AN EXCELLENT VIOLETTA COMMANDS VERDI’S LA TRAVIATA.SAN DIEGO STORY · Ken Herman · Partenope, Opera NEO · August 6, 2018
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“And the soprano Maya Kherani was lithe and radiant in fast coloratura arias like ‘Rejoice!’ and quietly magnetic in affecting numbers like ‘If God be for us.’”
“Soprano Maya Kherani, who lit up the stage as a saucy and sunny Zerlina in this spring’s ‘Don Giovanni’ with Boston Baroque, channeled dazzling euphoria into the hairpin melismas of ‘Rejoice Greatly’ and shimmered with confidence in ‘I Know That My Redeemer Liveth,’ scarcely letting the energy flag in the unenviable slot directly after the ‘Hallelujah’ chorus.”
“Kherani delivered these troubled solos with fiery dramatic expressivity and tender compassion. Her voice, most powerful in the upper register, was fully equal to the startling leaps and vocal pirouettes that Handel requires. Rapid‑fire scales and arpeggios came out effortlessly and hit home. There were some audible gasps from the audience.”
“If the only reason for this decision [to mount this production] had been to provide a vehicle for the extraordinary artistry of soprano Maya Kherani, that would have been justification enough. As Susanna, the bride of the titular marriage, Kherani added to her growing list of local operatic triumphs with a performance that was by turns tender, vivacious and full of dazzling vocal displays.”
“Maya Kherani is a mesmerising Pied Piper […] with a song so high it vanishes into the ether…”
“American soprano Maya Kherani is no stranger to American Bach. … Hers is a beautifully supported light lyric soprano … Her phrasings maintain the integrity of Bach’s vocal line, never pushing too hard, never underpowered. As was the case later in Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, her ornamentations were impeccable.”
“In American Bach’s performance, Coit was joined by soprano Maya Kherani, whose pinpoint clarity and no‑holds‑barred declamation contrasted beautifully with the mezzo‑soprano’s dark urgency. When Kherani and Coit sang together in their frequent duets, the effect was little short of miraculous.”
SOPRANO MAYA KHERANI BRINGS INTELLIGENCE, VULNERABILITY, AND A RICH, SOARING SOPRANO TO THE ROLE OF BEA, AND HER UNFORCED ACTING AND AUTHENTICITY MAKE THE VIEWER FEEL LIKE A FLY ON THE WALL.OPERA NEWS · Joanne Sydney Lessner · Three Decembers, Opera San José · December 31, 2020
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2026
“Maya Kherani and Sarah Coit interweaved their voices with such perfection that the audience floated out in pure happiness.”
“Kherani made an alluring Opera Lafayette debut, her light soprano filling but not overpowering the room. Her delicately articulated runs ornamented several pieces, including Purcell’s ‘If Music Be the Food of Love,’ and she flirted charmingly with the audience in Pelham Humfrey’s ‘Oh that I had a fine man.’”
“Soprano Maya Kherani opened the vocal part of the program with Henry Purcell’s ‘If Music be the food of Love.’ She has a beautiful presence and voice with excellent diction even in melismatic passages. […] Here Kherani gave a masterclass in performing this piece, and indeed every university and conservatory should play a recording of her performance to show both Baroque ornamentation and acting choices. […] What can one say except: This is how it’s done.”
2024
“Maya Kherani’s rich and deeply resonant soprano commanded attention from the start, with her dramatic delivery of the angel’s recitative announcing the birth of Jesus and the elaborately ornamented passages in arias rendered with elegance and ease.”
“Soprano Maya Kherani stood out not just for the number and variety of her recitatives and airs, but for her creamy tone in all registers and her agility in leaps and passagework. A graceful ‘How beautiful are the feet,’ a floating ‘I know that my Redeemer liveth,’ and a fast, brilliant ‘Rejoice greatly’ with swirling cadenza were some of her high points.”
2023
“The singing is remarkably well handled, the timbre seductive.”“Le chant est remarquablement conduit, le timbre séduisant.”
“Maya Kherani’s lovely vocal richness as Autonoé is also seductive […]”“La jolie pulpe vocale de Maya Kherani en Autonoé séduit également […]”
“[…] the moving Autonoé of Maya Kherani […]”“[…] l’émouvante Autonoé de Maya Kherani […]”
“Maya Kherani’s Princess Autonoe has a wide range, with warm low notes and crystalline high ones.”“La princesse Autonoe de Maya Kherani présente une tessiture large comprenant des graves chauds autant que des aigus cristallins. […]”
2022
“Kherani’s meltingly tender ‘Deh vieni non tardar’ aria was the highlight of the entire performance. The sheer beauty of Kherani’s golden soprano is a wonder, as is her ability to infuse her character with spunk and wit to make it clear that Susanna might be caught in circumstances not of her own making, but she is no one’s fool.”
“Soprano Maya Kherani produced a lively and convincing performance in the roles of Drusilla and Fortuna.”
“Another great singer, Maya Kherani as Drusilla and Fortuna […]”“Otra gran cantante, Maya Kherani como Drusilla y Fortuna […]”
“[…] the amorous and delightful Drusilla of Maya Kherani […]”“[…] la Drusilla enamourée et délicieuse de Maya Kherani […]”
“Drusilla (the caressing Maya Kherani, thinking of the whole phrase) has consistency in her ideas.”“Drusilla (la caressante Maya Kherani, pensant à la totalité de la phrase) a de la suite dans les idées”
“Maya Kherani’s timbre […] has the sweetness of a soft candy and the powdered half‑tint of the latter role. She appears as steady and noble in a cocktail dress as in a one‑piece swimsuit. She projects with grace, from the tip of her chin, the inflections of her cantar d’affeto.”“Le timbre de Maya Kherani […] a la douceur de bonbon tendre et le poudré demi‑teinte de ce dernier rôle. Elle se montre aussi constante et noble, en robe de cocktail qu’en maillot de bain une pièce. Elle projette avec grâce, depuis la pointe de son menton, les inflexions de son cantar d’affeto.”
“Maya Kherani is stunning in the role of piper, haunting and charismatic as she charms first the rats and then the children.”
“Maya Kherani imbues the music with an ethereal otherworldliness”
2021
“Soprano Maya Kherani came out last, stunning in her red ensemble, her expressive, bell‑like vocals sparkling brighter than her jewels. She demanded attention from the start, her Arioso showcasing an impressive ability to glide in and out of diminuendos.”
“[…] soprano Maya Kherani delivered a most dramatic rendering of the angel sequence of recitatives announcing the birth of the baby Jesus in Part One while displaying a sound that was full, rich and deeply resonant in the beautifully lyric arias that follow throughout the oratorio.”
2020 and earlier
“Maya Kherani as Polly Peachum, the waif‑style heroine, offered a full‑throated and rich soprano display. Plaintive and poignant, she persuaded in almost every aria, showing that she was not only up to the task of reckoning sympathy, she too could bite.”
“Kherani’s Rosina is a witty revelation, whose comic reactions are nearly as entertaining as her superlative vocal performance.”
“Best of all may have been soprano Maya Kherani as Susanna. Her bright tones sparkled throughout the opera, and ‘Deh vieni, non tardar’ in Act IV was delightful.”
“Maya Kherani’s Tytania had the sparkling effervescence of a fine champagne from her first utterance to the final dance. Her entrance duet with Oberon had the competitive air of vocal ping‑pong as Britten intended […]”
“Kherani’s account of the title role was sweet‑toned and forthrightly dramatic, with a series of climactic high notes perfectly placed. […] For the 40‑minute ‘River of Light,’ Kherani returned to give another superb performance as Meera.”
“The student Nuria was sung with penetrating, crystalline tone by soprano Maya Kherani, who had little difficulty being heard above Golijov’s dense climaxes.”