The performance was at an arts festival at C.W.Post College on Long Island; there were two performances--Aug 8 and Aug 16; my parents lived on Long Island at the time and I was home from college on summer break before my senior year, and was lucky to go. I no longer know which of the two performances I attended. It was my first live opera, though I was a veteran of many years of Met radio broadcasts from childhood on, mostly thanks to my Italian grandmother.Although I don't think she ever attended a live opera (my grandfather had, to hear Caruso) she loved listening as long as the opera was in Italian or French; German operas got turned off fast. Steber was great. This is not the first time I've found a performance on Opera Depot that has personal memories for me, I'm so thankful for this!

A GREAT LIVE PERFORMANCE! STELLARE CAST!

While listening to this performance one gets the impression that all the participants were having a good time. Conductor Robert LaMarchina manages to keep his forces together (no mean achievement in this opera) and leads an exciting Tosca. Steber had just turned 50 and while her voice may not sound as pure as it did ten years earlier, she still has full control of it. Her top C at "Io quella lama" is one for the record books and she plunges down two octaves into her chest register with reckless abandonment. It's obvious she loves playing Tosca and makes as much as she can of every moment. Listen to the way she snarls "Giuro!" and "Assassino!" This lady means business! Cassilly is quite fiery himself and matches her note for note in their duets. Cassell, an underrated singer, is an excellent Scarpia and the supporting cast (including future Met Tosca Marilyn Zschau) contributes strongly to the drama. The sound is certainly listenable, despite the bumps, thumps, and rustling from a fidgety tapist (especiallyin Act One). In his review below, Sam B. insists the pitch of the tape is sharp, but after careful listening I think it is often the singers themselves who are a little sharp, probably because they were singing outside. Steber's adrenaline was probably running high which causes her to sharpen a bit. Most importantly though the singers all sound like themselves.A thoroughly enjoyable performance Tosca lovers or fans of these singers should definitely have!

Eleanor Steber was one of our great American singing treasures. This is a major addition to her legacy of performances of Tosca. It was wonderful to get the full performance after Opera Depot's previous release of Act III. BRAVO

For the first time I was disappointed in OPERA DEPOT. The historical significance of this performance cannot be denied (hence the 5 Star rating!). It being an “In-house” recording (actually an In-Tent recording!), the sound quality is what it is. BUT if one is going to sell something then one SHOULD repair what is repairable. The copy I received was almost ½ step (semi-tone) sharp. This can be fixed and should have been or, at the very least, it should be noted in the description. That being said, this is a welcome addition to the STEBER canon. Cassilly & Cassel are documented in a performance that is truly extraordinary and overseen by the amazing Robert LaMarchina. Definitely a keeper!

Audio quality is less than perfect at the beginning as, I'm guessing, the recorder gets into position. Beyond that, this is a good, blood-and-guts performance. I never think of Cassilly beyond Wagner, but he's not a bad Cavaradossi.One of my quibbles is that no location is given for the performance. I question sent to Opera Depot went unanswered.

Any live performance of Steber's is to be treasured but she is not the only star of this show,the young Richard Cassily is the real surprise. His lyric timbre and musicality make for ayouthful and ardent Cavaradossi alongside the beautifully sung Scarpia of Walter Cassel.This is a very special trio of artists with conductor Robert Lamarchina an exciting and supportive presence on the podium. The sound is very good though the orchestraoccasionally dominates but not enough to detract from one's enjoyment of this memorableperformance.