Description:

I may have found my all-time favorite performance of Idomeneo. In the title role, Nicola Gedda brings a perfect mix of regal gravitas and grace. His Act III scene, in which he is confronted with the task of sacrificing his son, is nothing short of heart-breaking. A young Jessye Norman sounds right at home in the world of Mozart, bringing vocal purity and astonishing breath support to the role of Idamante. Heather Harper's rich soprano elevates the role of Ilia from a garden-variety ingenue to a stoic Mozartian heroine in the mold of Donna Anna, the Countess, or Kostanza.

In Stereo

OD 11792-3