COMPOSERS: Verdi
LABELS: Sony Masterworks Heritage
WORKS: Opera arias
PERFORMER: Richard Tucker (tenor), Eileen Farrell (soprano); Vienna State Opera Orchestra/Nello Santi, Columbia SO/Fausto Cleva, New Philharmonia Orchestra/Franz Allers
CATALOGUE NO: MHK 62357 ADD 71:51 mins ££ 1961-6
During Tucker’s substantial career with the Metropolitan (31 roles over 31 seasons) he was noted as much for his reliability as his artistry. Though recorded while the singer was around fifty, these forthright Verdian interpretations continue to benefit from healthy tone as well as stylistic assurance. His clear and effective enunciation proves an asset in the recitatives, though in the arias themselves he can be four-square and stentorian, with a tendency to hector. George Hall
Verdi: Opera arias
During Tucker’s substantial career with the Metropolitan (31 roles over 31 seasons) he was noted as much for his reliability as his artistry. Though recorded while the singer was around fifty, these forthright Verdian interpretations continue to benefit from healthy tone as well as stylistic assurance. His clear and effective enunciation proves an asset in the recitatives, though in the arias themselves he can be four-square and stentorian, with a tendency to hector. George Hall
Our rating
3
Published: January 20, 2012 at 2:31 pm