Kate stringer, The Boston Musical intelligencer - Frauenliebe und leben / from the diary of virginia woolf (Boston Opera Collaborative)

Soprano Carley DeFranco is no less impressive as Schumann’s heroine, bringing authenticity and depth to a role that might run easily into caricature….Aided by a warm, supple soprano with a tone that can only be described as “sunny”, DeFranco fully embodies the innocence of a young woman in the throes of an idealized first love; there is a springtime freshness to her reading that makes Woolf’s world-weariness all the more difficult to bear. Yet the rosy enchantment DeFranco portrays at the beginning of the evening belies the fully mature woman we encounter in the show’s final scene—the young widow’s lament for her beloved spouse was subtle yet heart-rending, almost filmic in its realism.

Lani Lee, Boston Classical Review - A Feast of Remembrance (Boston Cecilia)

The performances also showcased excellent casting of soloists, both individually and also cohesively with one another…[DeFranco’s] bright, sweet timbre immediately set her apart, caressing the text with warmth and musical sensitivity…The “Gloria Patri” duet for DeFranco and tenor Lawrence Jones shimmered with buoyant energy, their voices and gestures blending in sprightly figures…More musically interesting Handel movements emerged in selections from Theodora, HWV 68. In “Thither let our hearts aspire,” DeFranco’s pure soprano floated and Wee Kiat Chia’s pastel-toned countertenor blended with sensitivity…In “Thais led the way” from Alexander’s Feast, HWV 75, DeFranco displayed a silvery timbre prized in this repertoire, paired with lively personality in little Baroque gestures.

Virginia Newes, The Boston Musical intelligencer - ode for st. cecilia’s day (Emmanuel Music)

“Orpheus could lead the savage race” was marked “Alla Hornpipe” by Handel. The dance, with its sharp accents and syncopations, was known to him from Purcell’s theater music and from published country-dance anthologies. Soprano Carley DeFranco matched the violin acrobatics with virtuosic roulades.

Jonathan blumhofer, boston classical review - st. john passion (Emmanuel Music)

Similarly fervent was alto Deborah Rentz-Moore’s “Von den Stricken Meiner Sünden,” its burnished low notes glowing. At the other end of the spectrum, soprano Carley DeFranco’s “Zerfließe, mein Herze” floated immaculately.

Matthew Winkler, The Boston Musical Intelligencer - Les Illuminations (Emmanuel Music)

Above and beyond her inimitable tone, DeFranco’s control in dynamics and subtlety of phrasing stood almost above the rest of the show. She embodied emotions from a dulcet and ethereal lullaby with “je danse” at the end of song 3a. “Phrase,” to chaotic, enraged confidence on “J’ai seul la clef de cette parade sauvage” at the end of song 8, “Parade.”

Interlude led to a particularly potent emotional moment…fabricating an alternate world for DeFranco’s entrance, in which she took our breath away.

Emmanuel Music and Urbanity Dance took up a challenging task, simultaneously representing poetry, music, and dance without one diminishing either. The peerless musical interpretations could have survived on their own, but the collaboration of the orchestra and Carley DeFranco resulted in an especially rousing achievement that stands among the best that this reviewer has heard this season.

anne Davenport, The Boston Musical Intelligencer - Our Transcendental Passion (Boston Cecilia)

Margaret Fuller’s cry “I accept the universe” anchored Part Two. Choir, soloists and instruments deepened their loving but marvelously raucous intercommunication. When DeFranco sang the Aria “Every soul is an incarnation of the infinite,” her voice achieved a timeless beauty, bearing the Transcendental message into a new sort of vast wilderness, full of promise.

Gillian Daniels, The New England Theater Geek - Frauenliebe Und Leben (Boston Opera Collaborative)

…She is the heroine of Robert Schumann’s Frauenliebe und -leben (A Woman’s Love and Life) from 1830, itself based on a series of poems by Adelbert von Chamisso. Two men filter the story of a fictional woman, a touching if pastel view of a girl coming of age. Carley DeFranco breathes life into this creature with a Disney-esque sweetness.

Jackie Wattenburgh, Melrose Free Press - Schubert Mass in G Major (Polymnia Choral Society)

The Schubert Mass brought excellent soloists. Stunning was the exquisitely soaring soprano of Carley DeFranco, her tone delicate and unchanging as she soared high with ease.