Search - Giuseppe di Stefano :: Giuseppe Di Stefano 1944: His First Recordings

The Most Beautiful Tenor Voice in its Prime

09/29/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Simply put, Di Stefano had, after arguably Caruso and Gigli, the most beautiful tenor voice of the century. This CD features his earliest recordings, in his early twenties, accompanied only by piano. The purity and timbre of the voice is stunning. It is pure velvety sweetness in all its aspects. Youthfull and fresh, Di Stefano's voice glows in these arias. It is amazing to hear Di Stefano's intuitive understanding of these arias, musically and emotionally, while so young. The Manon aria is the greatest recording of this aria ever, with a vulnerability in its interpretation and emotional directness in its delivery. The "E la solita storia" aria from Cilea's opera is perfectly sung, with precisely placed and highly effective dynamic shading at every turn, enhancing the power of the piece. The Pearl Fishers aria is another gem, with Di Stefano combining full voice and half voice in his flawless legato singing and executing diminuendos that seem to musically justify the aria instead of the aria justifying the diminuendos. One of the most important recordings ever made."