acclaim
Carmina Burana Recording,
Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra
Choral Society releases recording of "Carmina Burana"
"One of the stronger performances the Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra has delivered recently was its recent Mondavi performance of "Carmina Burana." Fortunately, the SCSO recorded it, and the fruits of that labor is its second CD release: "Carmina Burana."
The recording captures a luminous performance by soprano Ji Young Yang and excellent sectional singing by the 180 member chorus. The performance was conducted by SCSO artistic director Donald Kendrick."
– Edward Ortiz, Sacramento Bee
Carmina Burana, Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra
"The standout of the trio of soloists was Ji Young Yang, who made a big impression with her finely shaped soprano. Yang, a San Francisco Opera Adler and Merola program alum, offered chaste but radiant singing. Her voice was fluid and clear in the "In trutina" and she made short work of the difficult high notes in the "Dulcissime."
– Edward Ortiz, Sacramento Bee
Elder Hall Recital, Australia
“…soprano Ji Young Yang on her debut Australian concert tour, proved a bundle of vocal energy with a strong stage presence and plenty of dramatic impact in this Elder Hall recital for Recitals Australia…"
– Rodney Smith, The Advertiser
Mahler 4th Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony
"This movement saw the contribution of the young Korean soprano Ji Young Yang, and her interpretation of the words from Das Knaben Wunderhorn, a collection of German folk poems, was sensational. There was vigour and there was passion but in the main there was ethereal beauty, all wrapped up in a performance of stunning quality."
– Garry Fraser, The Courier, Dundee
"In spite of some sinister sleigh bells and screeching orchestral interjections, soprano Ji Young Yang secured a final victory for the childlike and innocent in the work as her plaintive song drew the symphony to a hushed close."
– Kenneth Walton, The Scotsman, Edinburgh
Die Todt Stadt, San Francisco Opera
"Lucas Meacham and Ji Young Yang left great impressions in their supporting roles."
– Mark Rudio, SF Examiner
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Boris Godunov, San Francisco Opera
“Soprano Ji Young Yang was perfect as the Czar’s daughter Xenia.”
– Michael Milenski, Opera Now
“Three present Adler Fellows and a former one contributed mightily. Ji Young Yang’s Xenia was bright and charming, with a voice that lights up the stage (which, paradoxically, was kept way too dark most of the time on Göran Wassberg’s “economical” unit set).”
– SFCV, "Godunov, in short," Oct 22, '08
L'Elisir d'amore, San Francisco Opera
"Inva Mula, in her SF debut, was terrific, as was Ji Young Yang in a production that brought out all the sparkle of Donizetti's score."
– Mark Rudio, SF Examiner
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“When it comes to soprano Ji Young Yang, I heartily concur. Her Giannetta in SFO’s current production of L’Elisir d’Amore lights up the stage. In addition to her unique, silvery sweet timbre, which brings to mind the voices of Toti dal Monte and several other inter-war sopranos, Young’s inner radiance, outward beauty, and riveting presence proclaim stardom.”
– San Francisco Classical Voice (SFCV), Nov 4, '08
“No such shortcuts were taken in the San Francisco Opera production, which opened on Wednesday. The cast is solid gold, and includes three memorable debutants, the return of Ramón Vargas as Nemorino, and the bright Giannetta of Ji Young Yang (who will sing Adina in the upcoming Family Performances, Nov. 8 and 15 — a much anticipated role debut by this outstanding Adler Fellow).”
– SFCV, "The Elixir of Generous Casting," Oct 29, '08
“Rounding out the cast was Adler Fellow Ji Young Yang, giving a sweet performance as Giannetta.”
– San Francisco Chronicle, Oct 31, '08
“Korean soprano Ji Young Yang continues to make her bid as Next Adler Fellow to Make it Big, performing the town gossip, Giannetta, with beautifully direct lines and an assured stage presence.”
– Michael J. Vaughn, The Opera Critic
The Future is Now, San Francisco Opera Adler Concert
“Charming and excellent as Yang was in the Trio, she really shone as Semele in scenes from the Handel opera…. The coloratura …did beautifully in the scene, the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, conducted by Patrick Summers, was at its best as well.”
– Janos Gereben, The San Francisco Examiner
Little Prince, San Francisco Opera
“Ji Young Yang played an elegant Rose. It was a pleasure to hear her crystalline soprano voice in a smaller venue than the War Memorial Opera House as it allowed us to appreciate more of the fine nuances of her instrument.”
– SFCV, May '08
L'Elisir d'amore, Boston Lyric Opera
“Assigned to the small role of Giannetta, Ji Young Yang was a standout. Her delightful soprano voice had a luster and delicacy far better suited to the role of Adina.”
– EDGE Boston, Mar '08
“Young soprano Ji Young Yang, as a peasant girl, can probably sing a high Z, though she’s relentlessly arch.”
– The Boston Phoenix, Mar '08
"Ji Young Yang, making her company debut, was likable in the small role of the village girl Giannetta.”
– Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe
Creature Songs (Martha Horst), The Earplay Ensemble
“All three songs formed a lovely hymn and quasi-love-poem to nature. Soprano Yang…was especially outstanding in her not-so-easy role, often soaring into very high registers.”
– Heuwell Tircuit, The San Francisco Chronicle
Appomattox (World Premiere), San Francisco Opera
“The cast was admirable…Ji Young Yang, an appealing lyric soprano playing Lee’s winsome daughter, and Noah Stewart, a gifted young tenor as the courageous black journalist T. Morris Chester, were standouts.”
– Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times
Music at Meyer, San Francisco Opera Adler Concert
“Soprano Ji Young Yang’s delivery is bright and stunning agile…fluent and graceful. [Yang] had a busy evening. Her "Fire Aria" from Ravel's L'Enfant et les sortilèges and, especially, "Myself I Shall Adore" from Handel's Semele, were fluent and graceful. The silvery quality in her voice was reminiscent of the young Elizabeth Futral's virtuosity as a coloratura soprano."
– Janos Gereben, SFCV, May 14, '07
Tannhäuser, San Francisco Opera
“Adler Fellow Ji Young Yang offered a sweet turn as the shepherd boy.”
– The San Francisco Chronicle, Sep '07
Merola Grand Finals, San Francisco Opera, Merola Program
“Korean soprano a standout…Also as usual, there was all-around high quality and some memorable highlights. The loudest applause might have gone to others, but to my ears the highest praise belonged to Korean soprano Ji Young Yang, singing Sophie to Katharine Tier's Octavian in the presentation of the rose scene from Richard Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier. The petite singer has a big voice, but that's not what distinguishes her. Early in her career, Ji Young Yang delivers an impressive combination of confident musicality, a sense of the drama, clear diction, and — above all — a purity of voice.”
– SFCV, "Merola: We’ll build our house," Aug '06
“Vocally, one of the most striking performances of the evening came from a young singer in a three-minute role. After being forced to sit motionless on stage for almost an hour, Adler Fellow Ji Young Yang sang the Shepherd’s aria with affecting brilliance, exhibiting both musical intelligence and peerless communication of emotions. When she sang of the sun’s warmth (”da strahlte warm die Sonnen”), you could feel the bright light, the nourishing heat. Yang is an extraordinary talent.”
– SFCV, Sep '07
