This Elektra has two veterans (as far as their roles are concerned) and one portrayal I hadn't heard before now. Mastilovic and Rysanek were rightly celebrated for their portrayals of these two sisters (Opera Depot has two other Elektras with Mastilovic as the eponymous heroine and five with Rysanek as her put-upon sister). They are both in good shape here. If possible, Mastilovic sounds steadier and less wobbly than in the other recordings. The real attraction is Hoffmann whose rich, powerful mezzo is heard as Klytemnestra. She sings it beautifully, but with plenty of bile. She refrains from making the gasps and grunts that other Klytemnestras do and leaves a positive impression (I don't think she does her own offstage screams though). The other memorable portrayal is Peter Wimberger's Orest. Wimberger was one of those reliable house basses that people tended to take for granted rather like William Wildermann because they were always good. The rest of the cast are good as well. Hollreiser leads a solid performance.The sound isn't great. It takes a while for the tapist to settle down and thereafter the voices are rather recessed though still audible. This isn't the worst sound I've heard by a long shot, but it does require some adjustment. There is also some music missing just before Chrysothemis escapes Elektra's attempt to persuade her to kill their mother (probably the tape had to be turned over).For fans of the singers.

A good recording of a Viennese Elektra which mirrors the former standard of Staatsoper. Thus, you can hear in Grace Hoffmann a real singing Klytemnästra (as we, later on, could hear in Christa Ludwig), in Leonie Rysanek a more than one decade leading Chrysothemis and in Danica Mastilovic a versatile Elektra under Hollreiser secure baton and surrounded by excellent comprimarii.