This is made up of a concert or three that took place in San Francisco in October, 1950. At the time, Giuseppe di Stefano’s voice was the perfect lyric, but not light, tenor. He could focus and back up his relatively non-dark sound in such a way that power was implied–quite a feat. He also invariably sounded involved in what he was singing. The fact that he sang in an open-throated manner, without “covering” the notes above G, may have been discussed by critics, but it certainly had not yet begun to adversely affect his voice. In short, he had just about everything: a beautiful tone, fine diction, an elegant way with phrasing, and an ability to sing softly as well as to drive the voice to what seemed like real passion.
He sounds oddly detached at start of the Lucia duet with (the chirpy, pointless) Lily Pons, but as usual he heats up and delivers a superb Edgardo. He partners Bidu Sayao and Renata Tebaldi handsomely in Bohème and Butterfly, and they also are in excellent voice. His solos are equally enticing. This is a gorgeous CD, a tenor-lover’s treat.
