For Joan Sutherland's first-ever "Puritani," Glyndebourne Opera pulled out all the stops. Vittorio Gun was the finest interpreter of *primo ottocento* opera (and I am not forgetting Toscanini) and guides the performance with a firm but not inflexible hand. There can be no question that Sutherland was a phenomenon but her voice is long on *larmes de la void," making Elvira a very droopy lady indeed. Ernest Blanc and Giorgio Modesti are also first-rank singers, interpreting their roles with tremendous *slancio.* The fly in the ointment, to some extent, is Nicola Filacuridi's Arturo. His ambrosial tenor sounds a size small and he doesn't have the coloratura ability to keep up with Sutherland, skipping a number of high notes. The smaller roles are all in solid hands. There are a couple of patches of digital interference in the transfer but the original broadcast sound has great presence.

A good recording

NOTE: I did not purchase this recording from Opera Debot. Nonetheless, it is definitely the same recording, so I though I might as well leave a review.Joan Sutherland in her prime is irresistible here, and this is reason enough to buy this immediately. Although this recording misses out on a few of the top notes she would later add (one in \""Son vergin vezzosa\"" and the other one being the very lyrical one following the multiple High Cs before the end of Act I) and the opera finally aria wasn't \""rediscovered\"" back then, she is still great. The tenor, Filacuridi, is a little shaky on some parts, and does not sing a few of the high notes, including the high D in the duet with Sutherland. He also does not go to the high F, something not uncommon in tenors, yet neither does he attempt the D-flat. At the end of \""Vieni fra queste braccia\"" Joan Sutherland sings the higher harmony usually done by tenors and goes to the high D alone, but Filacuridi does accompany her to the high C, which they hold for quite a bit. I am not that good a reviewer, so I'll let you decide for yourself. It's ultimately worth buying, especially at this price.