Reviews

Mozart: The Goose of Cairo
London Mozart Players

The music for the captive Celidora and Lavinia (rapturously sung by Fflur Wynn and Soraya Mafi)....
Alexandra Coghlan, Opera, June 2016



​Season 14/15
British-based talent continues to bubble up – this year has seen outstanding performances from neophytes such as Soraya Mafi
'Opera in 2015: fighting low blows with high notes'
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 15 December 2015



Sondheim: Sweeney Todd
Johanna
Welsh National Opera

...Soraya Mafi a sweet, deliquescent Johanna...
Stephen Walsh, The Arts Desk, 09 October 2015

Only Soraya Mafi’s sweet-voiced Johanna and Jamie Muscato’s resolutely decent Anthony suggest a few shreds of goodness left in Sondheim’s “great black pit” of London.
Richard Morrison, The Times, 12 October 2015

Soraya Mafi is an affecting Johanna.
Mark Valencia, What's on Stage, 10 October 2015

Soraya Mafi [sang] delightfully as Johanna.
Lucy Jeffrey, Scene and Heard, 12 October 2015

...the youthful parts are brilliantly taken by George Ure (Tobias), Soraya Mafi (Johanna) and Jamie Muscato (Anthony).
Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, 18 October 2015

The lilting duets of the young lovers Anthony and Johanna - sung beautifully by Jamie Muscato and Soraya Mafi - is another highlight.
Eryl Crump, Welsh Daily Post, 30 October 2015

Jamie Muscato as Anthony and Soraya Mafi as Johanna are so bright-voiced a pair of young lovers...that they swiftly pull you in and under.
Richard Bratby, Birmingham Mail, 20 November

stand outs among the cast...Soraya Mafi, whose crystalline, pitch-perfect vocals and exquisite diction shone throughout, not least of all when projecting “Green Finch and Linnet Bird” through the auditorium after her microphone failed.
Kyle Pedley, Amusings, 22 November

Soraya Mafi's Johanna and George Ure's Tobias both had flair
Rian Evans, Opera, December 2015



Recital with Ian Tindale
Buxton Opera Festival

Buxton Festival find of the year? Soprano Soraya Mafi, without a doubt. She was the second prize winner in the 2015 Kathleen Ferrier Awards, at which pianist Ian Tindale took the Accompanists' Prize. Together they gave one of the most captivating song recitals I've ever had the good luck to attend (St John's Church, Buxton, UK, 11 July 2015). They showed an idiomatic command of an eclectic repertoire that began with Mozart. In 'Aer tranquiillo e di sereni' from Il Re Pastore Mafi's effortless-sounding precision in runs complemented her telling changes of mood. Following Ian Tindale's persuasive scene-settingfor 'Deh vieni, non tardar', Susanna's famously teasing love-song to Figaro, Mafi was fully in command of every expressive nuance, projecting the knife edge of emotional ambivalence underneath. Someone sign her up to sing the role on stage, immediately.
From there they moved on to Richard Strauss, capturing the youthful exuberance of 'Schlagende Herzen', the expressive warmth of 'Du meines Herzens Krönelein', and the gentle intimacy of 'Morgen'. In Poulenc's Two Poems of Louis Aragon the forlorn melancholy of 'C' was sharply counterpointed against the edgy high spirits of 'Fêtes Galantes'. Then it was on to a refreshingly inventive English song selection. In Walton's Three Poems of Edith Sitwell, Mafi's supple phrasing in 'Daphne', and her effortless octave leap on the word 'enchanting' in 'Through Gilded Trellises' were evidence of her impressive technique, and the jazz-inspired fun and games of 'Old Sir Faulk' were helped along by Tindale's crisp dance-band substitute. Charming accounts of Sullivan's 'Orpheus with his lute' and Parry's 'My heart is like a singing bird' framed a real rarity, Julius Harrison's 'Philomel', a delightful setting of the lyric 'You spotted snakes', from A Midsummernight's Dream. Gershwin comes naturally to them, as well. 'Someone to watch over me' was engagingly wistful, and 'By Strauss' all ebullient charm, with Mafi allowing her Lancashireaccent to come through, to winning effect. From there Tindale contrived a neat segue into a sparkling account of the vocal version of Johann Strauss 2nd's Frühlingstimmen.
For an encore they played their trump card — 'It's my Wedding', from Jonathan Dove's 'musical tale' The Enchanted Pig, a hilarious four-minute tantrum for a bride whose wedding isn't measuring up to her exacting standards. Mafi and Tindale gave it the full drama-queentreatment. The whole recital was a brilliant study in versatility, and a master-class in establishing an easy rapport with an audience, from singer and pianist alike.
Mike Wheeler, Music and Vision magazine, 23 July 2015 

Handel: Arianna in Creta
Arianna
London Handel Festival

"...she is all crystalline tone and spine-tingling high notes."
Tim Ashley, The Guardian

"...I'd certainly want to hear Soraya Mafi again. The skirt she wore as Arianna seemed more San Francisco than Ancient Greece, but her emotional conviction and sturdy soprano still forged a convincing character, trapped in one of those moral tizzies and misunderstands so typical of opera seria."
Geoff Brown, The Times

"...with a clear, bright soprano was Soraya Mafi, a highly versatile young soprano who was recently awarded the Maggie Teyte Award and Miriam Licette Scholarship...Miss Mafi proved to be the most technically proficient of all the singers on display. My instincts suggest that you could put any sort of score in front of this young singer and she would tackle it with the same level of commitment and poise she brought to the role of Arianna. It was really exciting that for a few seconds she stepped off the stage and sang with full voice virtually next to my seat. By contrast it was her ability to float a line sotto voce that was probably the most impressive aspect of her performance. I have no doubt we shall see a lot more of her on the operatic stage in future."
Miranda Jackson, Opera Britannia,

"Soraya Mafi was a beguiling Arianna, mistaking Teseo’s intentions in
risking his life to save Carilda from the Minotaur before Minos decrees that  Arianna herself must be sacrificed in her place. As such, Mafi brought the passion of a lover as well as the desperation and fury of one who thinks herself betrayed, skilfully juxtaposing these in her aria ‘Sdegno, amore fanno’ at the end of Act One."
 Curtis Rogers, Classical Source

Soraya as Arianna in Arianna In Creta, London Handel Festival. Photo: Chris Christodolou

Ravel: L'enfant et les Sortileges
Le Feu/Le Rossignol
RCMIOS

"Especially striking among the vocal performances...Soraya Mafi's pinpoint tracery (and real trill) as Le Feu/Le Rossignol"
Yehuda Shapiro, Opera Magazine February 2014

Soraya Mafi (right) as Soeur Constance in Dialogues des Carmelites, Grange Park Opera. Photograph Robert Workman

"Soraya Mafi is enchanting..."
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph




​Mozart: The Magic Flute
Papagena
English National Opera

Soraya Mafi looked and sounded winning as Papagena.
Russ McDonald, Opera, April 2016

​Gilbert and Sullivan: The Pirates of Penzance
Edith
English National Opera

Soraya Mafi is enchanting as [Mabel's] kid sister Edith.
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 10 May 2015

Soraya Mafi [makes a] promising house debut as Edith.
Sam Smith, Music OHM, 11 May 2015

Making her ENO debut, soprano Soraya Mafi (second prize winner in the recent 2015 Kathleen Ferrier competition) was a lively Edith.
Claire Seymour, Opera Today, 11 May 2015


Finals of Kathleen Ferrier Competition 2015
Wigmore Hall

Soraya Mafi, a 26-year-old Mancunian from the RCM, has already made her mark - she has small roles in ENO’s forthcoming 'The Pirates of Penzance' and 'The Magic Flute'. Her charm and exuberance shone through Johann Strauss’s 'Frühlingstimmen', giving notice of an Adele and Zerbinetta to come. I loved her beautifully modulated reading of Liszt’s ecstatic 'Oh! quand je dors' and appreciated her pure enunciation in Julius Harrison’s 'Philomel'... I would have given Mafi first prize.
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 25 April 2015


Mozart: Il Re Pastore
Aminta
Théâtre du Chatelet

'L'amerò, sarò costante'...brought the best singing of the evening from Soraya Mafi, whose perfectly schooled soprano provided a smooth, delicate line.
Stephen J. Mudge, Opera News, April 2015

"En Aminta, créé à l’époque par un castrat, Soraya Mafi...délivre au second acte un « L’amero, saro costante » (avec violon solo) de toute beauté et très longuement applaudi."
Il Tenero Momento, 22 January 2015 

"Le plateau vocal est dominé sans conteste par son trio féminin, très à l’aise. C’est surtout l’Aminta de Soraya Mafi qui ravit à chaque apparition autour de la souplesse des transitions, la subtilité de la diction, l’intelligence du phrasé. Petite voix, elle est vivement applaudie à l’issue de la présentation." Florent Coudeyrat, Concerto Net, January 2015 

"...la musicalité de Soraya Mafi... "
Christian Merlin, Le Figaro, 23 January 2015 

"Le talent de Soraya Mafi n’est cependant pas en cause. Elle est tout à fait crédible en jeune berger amoureux. Au second acte le fameux air 'L’amerò sarò costante' chanté avec délicatesse et d’infinies nuances dans un silence quasi religieux, lui vaut un succès personnel bien mérité."
Christian Peter, Forum Opéra, 22 January 2015 

"Soraya Mafi au timbre gracieux...charme et une sorte d’innocence." Caroline Alexander, Web Théâtre, January 2015 

Les jeunes voix de Rainer Trost, Soraya Mafi et Raquel Camarinha, dominent leur sujet et son traitement, coloratures comprises,avec une projection aisée.
Pierre-René Serna, Concert Classic, January 2015

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Poulenc: Carmelites 
Constance
Grange Park Opera

"Soraya Mafi (still a student at the RCM) made an enchanting Constance – the one beacon of light in the encroaching darkness."
Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph.

"...neither compelled as much attention as the lovely bright chirpings of Soraya Mafi, a total joy as the sprightly Sister Constance."
Geoff Brown, The Times

"...while Soraya Mafi, singing with beautiful clarity as the cheerful young peasant Sister Constance."
Mark Ronan, Theatre Review

"...young Soraya Mafi lights up the stage and pricks up the ears with her radiant Constance - she's still at college, but her star potential is obvious."
Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times

"Stealing the show, however, was the Sœur Constance of Soraya Mafi, possessor of a bright, engaging soprano. Constance is the youngest member of the order, pure and innocent, but with a bubbly personality which she has difficulty suppressing. It’s no surprise that Poulenc admitted to falling in love with the character as he composed his opera. Young Mafi is clearly one to watch."
Mark Pullinger, Opera Britannia

"Most notable of all was the Soeur Constance of Lancashire-born Soraya Mafi, whose pristine light soprano and engaging staging personality suggest a young singer of real promise."
George Hall, Opera Magazine August 2013