Have not listen to the performance yet

I'm guessing the raison d'etre for this release was Licia Albanese's Tosca (there is also a fine 1957 Met broadcast). She was 63 when this was recorded and her voice was still in excellent condition. She is shorter-breathed than she was 10 or 15 years earlier, but the basic core of her voice is still steady and she has no problems reaching the high notes. She is a passionate Tosca whose performance is much subtler than one might expect from some of her other portrayals. She sings the "Quanto?" in the second act, but then spits out "Il prezzo!" with furious disdain. The audience greets her first entrance with wild applause and applauds her "Vissi d'arte" for over a minute. As good as Albanese is, Giovanni Consiglio's Cavaradossi is perhaps more memorable because there's so little of him preserved in complete performances. What a voice! He has that Italianate tenor sound in spades and produces high notes with tremendous squillo. The second act "Vittoria!" is a highlight of the performance. Louis Sgarro was a Met comprimario for years; here he gets to take center stage and proves himself worthy with excellent diction and a strong bass-baritone. The supporting cast is very good (Nico Castel is the Spoletta). The shepherd boy in the last act is sung by a mature woman who muffs the lyrics. Coppola conducts a reasonably tight performance although the off-stage cantata in Act Two is a mess. The voices are recessed, but audible. Fans of the opera or singers should get this.