Méphistophélès - Faust - Lyric Opera of Chicago

"As the devil incarnate, Samuel Ramey, in one of his signature roles, once again steals the show. When he declares in Act 1, 'behold me, a man of distinction,' he virtually writes his own review. So seductive is his characterization that you sense his presence even when he's offstage or in the wings.

"In excellent voice throughout, Ramey elevates his performance with little touches, such as his wicked grin (when he shatters Valentin's sword in Act 2), his whispered asides ('she looks a little overripe' he says of Marthe) and demonic swagger (as he stuffs an apple into a wench's mouth in Act 4). And in Act 5, when the sixtysomething Ramey races up a massive flight of stone stairs, you know he can truly work miracles."

— Chicago Sun-Times, November 17, 2003

"And [the production] will delight fans of bass Samuel Ramey, prancing about with sardonic glee in a commanding reprise of his definitive Méphistophélès, the most devilish of his many satanic specialties.

"Ramey, a true grand seigneur of evil easily dominates every scene he's in. At 61 ... he still can roll out his big black basso with tremendous authority, focus and style for the golden calf song and serenade in which the devil mocks Marguerite. The smartest thing Corsaro has done is to give free rein to Ramey's natural sense of theatrical fun."

— Chicago Tribune, November 16, 2003

"Ramey's chilling, cackling arias are darkly sublime"

"It seems astonishing that Thursday's performance at Benaroya Hall marked the Seattle debut of renowned operatic bass-baritone Samuel Ramey, but it could not have been a more fitting program. ...

"The entire evening was a delight. Ramey, in unrelieved black with a streamlined frock coat, a sparkling earring and a shock of silver hair, gave us songs of triumphant destruction and attempted seduction, of summoning degraded souls and blasphemous drinking, plus sarcastic, patronizing commentary and icy damnation." [ full review ]

— Philippa Kiraly, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, October 25, 2003

"Villains get their due with bass Samuel Ramey working devilish sorcery"

"Speak of the devil, and Samuel Ramey appears.

"For a quarter of a century, the great American bass has been thrilling San Francisco audiences with his diabolical vocal artistry, embodying a wide range of Mephistophelean seducers and other villains. He did it again in the War Memorial Opera House on Sunday night, in a powerfully enjoyable gala concert marking the 25th anniversary of his San Francisco Opera debut." [ full review ]

— Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, October 21, 2003

Cheery bass Samuel Ramey brings right pitch to dark roles

"Samuel Ramey scares people. Gifted with an ominously rumbling bass voice and famed in opera houses around the world for his prince-of-darkness portrayals – Mephistopheles in Gounod's Faust, the Devil in Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, the title role in Boito's Mefistofele – the American singer casts an imposing, inky shadow."

" 'The first time I worked with him I was terrified,' says Donald Runnicles, music director of the San Francisco Opera. 'I equated the regal quality of his voice with someone who would look upon me with disdain. The voice intimidates you.'

"What Runnicles soon discovered – what anyone who works with Ramey or meets him for the first time does – is not to believe a note of it. Genial, modest bordering on downright shy, sunny of disposition and gracious to everyone from conductors to the custodial staff, Ramey may be the Clark Kent of opera." [ full review ]

— Steven Winn, The San Francisco Chronicle, October 15, 2003

In Recital – Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA

"What a wonderful evening, and what a gifted singer Ramey is, with a voice that remains flexible and youthful ..." [ full review ]

— Paul Schlueter, The Morning Call, March 3, 2003

Title roles – Bluebeard's Castle and Gianni Schicchi – Los Angeles Opera

"Ramey was a magnificently saturnine presence ... his singing weighty and resonant ..." [ full review ]

— Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, June 5, 2002

"Samuel Ramey provides the most essential unifying element as he delivers a virtuosic performance of the two title roles.

"Ramey milks it for all it's worth, and lives up to the challenge of, in effect, singing two interconnected parts, one of Schicchi and one of Schicchi imitating Donati."

— Steven Oxman, Variety, June 4, 2002

"Ramey skillfully plays the role (Gianni Schicchi) to the hilt."

— Jim Farber, LA Daily Breeze, June 2, 2002

"Ramey is a national treasure."

— Daniel Cariaga, LA Times, June 3, 2002

"Ramey's full, rich baritone was also the servant of the drama, increasing in inflection and intensity toward the climax.

"For energy and wit, none could match Ramey (Schicchi) ... he came blustering on the stage like Groucho Marx, and maintained his sardonic bearing throughout the show."

— Rick Mortensen, Daily News, June 5, 2002

"To hear Ramey as the dark and frightening Bluebeard and then return from intermission to see him as the gangly, comic rustic is as full an evening of opera as anyone could ask for."

— John Farrell, Press Telegram, June 4, 2002

In concert – Verdi's Requiem – New York Philharmonic, Riccardo Muti conducting

"The bass Samuel Ramey sang with chilling power. When on judgment day, some ominous voice from the beyond consigns all sinners to 'flames of woe unbounded,' as the Requiem text states, surely that voice will sound like Mr. Ramey's."

— Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times, April 24, 2002

"[Ramey] was thoroughly convincing both in his thunderous moments and in his plaintive or reflective ones. His 'salve me,' piano, was shockingly good."

— Jay Nordlinger, The New York Sun, April 22, 2002

Fiesco – Simon Boccanegra – San Francisco Opera

"Samuel Ramey's intense Fiesco became the center from which the performance found its energy and gained its assurance."

— Opera News, October 2001

Title role – Attila – Opéra National de Paris

"Samuel Ramey provided the unquestionable triumph of the evening. Singing with time-defying power and resonance, he made Attila's nightmare scene as fine a piece of Verdi singing as one is likely to hear, the top of the voice ringing out in spectacular fashion. He knew how to turn all of his scenes to his advantage, and he brought as much humanity to the role as was possible."

— Opera News, January 2002

Phillip II – Don Carlo – Metropolitan Opera

"... American bass Samuel Ramey provides the glue that holds it all together. When Ramey pours out Phillip's private agony in his Act IV aria 'Ella giamma m'amo,' his character is no longer merely a conniving politician – he's a suffering human being who deserves our compassion. Ramey is mesmerizing in his soliloquy as well as in the scene that follows."

— The New York Times

"[Ramey] conveyed the agonies of the threatened monarch with masterly pathos, shading 'Ella giammai m'amo' in haunted pianissimo tones and confronting the Grand Inquisitor with wide-ranging fervour."

— Martin Bernheimer, Financial Times