Bach, Johannespassion, Eisenach, April 2023
Aisling Kenny (soprano) proved how much this music wants to be played, and how much it must try to express what would be denied to the pure word. She jumped in for the equally delightful Dorothee Mields in the second half.
‘Wie sehr diese Musik aber gespielt werden will, wie sehr sie versuchen muss auszudrücken, was dem reinen Wort verwehrt bliebe, bewies Aisling Kenny (Sopran). Sie sprang in der zweiten Hälfte für die ebenso entzückende Dorothee Mields ein.’
Philipp Etzel, Thüringer Allgemeine
The Hibernian Muse – Music for Ireland by Purcell and Cousser by the Irish Baroque Orchestra, Peter Whelan and Sestina, Linn Records, 2022
‘The work’s nine solo soprano parts are distributed among three singers, Maria Keohane, Aisling Kenny and Sinéad O’Kelly, who all do their utmost to invest their various arias with interest, while Whelan draws stylish and energetic performances from the orchestra and Belfast choir Sestina… The CD is rounded out by a gutsy performance of ‘Sín síos suas liom’ by Aisling Kenny, as if to highlight the distance between the Dublin court and the rest of the country.’
Mark Fitzgerald, The Journal of Music
Mozart Kronungsmesse, Laeiszhalle Hamburg, 2022
‘the “Agnus dei” with soprano and oboe solo is a marvel. Impressive that the excellent choir can fill the solos from its own ranks.’
…Das „Agnus dei“ mit Sopran- und Oboen-Solo ist ein Wunderwerk. Eindrücklich, dass der exzellente Chor die Soli aus seinen eigenen Reihen besetzen kann.
Elisabeth Richter, Hamburger Abendblatt
La Fresca Rosa, Galway Early Music Festival, May 2021
‘This concert’s centrepiece, Barbara Strozzi’s heartbreaking Lagrime Mie, was the highlight of the concert and close to the highlight of the whole festival. Strozzi’s music is exceptional to begin with: the opening a tearful, sustained high note, delicate ornamentation causing it to tremble and sob – a knot in the stomach; later, chromatic notes twist the knot. But the performance was just as good, with some superb choices in terms of timbre and ornamentation; Kenny’s voice by turns delicate, passionate and declamatory, and the harpsichord occasionally stepping aside for theorbo guitar accompaniment, drawing the music to a more personal, intimate place.
Brendan Finan, The Journal of Music
Bach and before, Resurgam, Cork Choral Festival, May 2021
‘Siobhán Armstrong’s plucked harp strings blended with the ethereal soprano voices of Aisling Kenny and Charlotte Trepess in Monteverdi’s setting of the Song of Solomon would make a cynic believe in angels.’
Cathy Desmond, Irish Examiner
Couperin 350, National Concert Hall, 2018
Purcell’s O dive custos (Elegy for Queen Mary)— a restrained exercise in courtly lament, [was] sung very effectively by Kenny and Carty. The two singers return at the end for Couperin’s sunny Motet pour le jour de Pâques, making the journey from Holy Week to Easter in a superbly-controlled performance of this virtuoso duet.
Michael Lee, Golden Plec
St Matthew Passion, Eastbourne, February 2018
‘Irish soprano Aisling Kenny showed off a glorious top register, crystal clear and ringing, delighting the audience.’
Carol Mounter, Eastbourne Herald
Aisling Kenny 