The sound is quite bad (but better than in some transfers of this performance I’ve encountered), conductor Umberto Mugnai leads routinely and slashes the score (most bothersomely in the Rigoletto/Gilda duet in Act 1, scene 2), the orchestra and chorus are poor, ensemble falls to pieces entirely by the last act, the prompter is audible throughout, the audience constantly interrupts with applause, Piero Campolonghi is a gruff, mediocre Rigoletto, Giuseppe di Stefano screams mercilessly, holds notes as long as he can, and after ending “La donna e mobile” flat precedes to sing it again and ends it flat again, and the Sparafucile cannot keep to the pitch for more than three measures in a row. And then there’s Callas: Her Gilda is moving and lovely, the voice is in fabulous shape from top to bottom (she even takes a rather in-bad-taste, high-E ending to “Caro nome”), and her sense of rhythm and line–even amid the surrounding chaos–is impeccable. (She does, however, have one of her rare memory lapses in “Tutte le feste al tempio”.) She uses a very youthful, “white” sound for this young innocent, and her sadness after her seduction is both desperate and knowing. But is the investment in this set worth it for her input? No, it is not. This performance will give you a headache.
