Performance excellent, sound quality good, BUT, and a very BIG BUT, like so many recordings coming from the Continental and Scandinavian areas, this recording is pitched one half tone sharp. It is NOT at score pitch. I don't know why this happens so often, but it is sloppy work and should have been checked AND CORRECTED before it went out for sale.My 2 cents+ worth.Steve Bauman

An excellent Bjorling

First of all: Swedish language didn't disturb me in the pleasure. The absolut hero of this performance is Bjoerling, the only singer who sings in Italian. He is simple phenomenal. I have three Manon Lescaut performances with him and I think this is his best production. Here he sings like a god. Hjördis Schymberg who had her last active year in the Swedish Royal Opera House in 1959 is a worthy partner of Bjoerling. She sings not in the style of the great Italian tragediennes like Olivero, Scotto or Zeani, her production is more lyrical but she is very convincing. The supporting cast is very strong with very good voices. Nils Grevillius leads a very passionate performance. It's a secret why to move the Intermezzo into the 4th act but finally didn't disturb me. Excellent performance, highly recommended.

Let's get it out of the way: Bjoerling sings in Italian, everyone else sings in Swedish. It's a little unusual for us today when opera is so much more internationalized than it was back in 1959, but once we've accepted that we get a passionate performance. Bjoerling still sounds marvelous; Des Grieux was one of his best roles so one can fully understand the reason for his fame. Schymberg had been his Violetta back in 1939 and now she is his Manon. Her voice is still very attractive and she captures Manon's coquettish nature and growing maturity as the opera progresses. She is one of the few Manons who sports a great trill in the second act and easily makes the high Cs (although she cracks the one in her unison phrase with Des Grieux in the last act). Grevellius cuts a little of her "Sola, perduta, abbandonnata", but that was a traditional cut in some houses. We're lucky we get any of it - some houses cut it altogether!The other singers are all first-rate. Hasslo was a fine baritone who sang many leads at the Royal Swedish Opera and Tyren would go on to grace many a performance with his beautiful bass. The prelude to Act Three is played before Act Four (an announcer explains why after the third act, but my Swedish isn't fluent enough to follow him completely. )There are too few tracks per disc (unusual for Opera Depot). The sound is excellent. Fans of Bjoerling should definitely acquire this. Lovers of the opera itself will also enjoy this performance.

My only excuse to buy this is Bjoling