I first heard Fischer-Dieskau in this opera on a DG querschnitt disc that also starred Evelyn Lear as Tatiana. Here he is in the complete role recorded a few years earlier with a tremendously good cast. He himself is in sterling voice and conveys Onegin's blase weariness and self-induced boredom with confidence. Jurinac was one of Vienna's darlings and her limpidly sung Tatiana approaches perfection. Indeed her Letter Scene garners well over a minute of applause. Dermota is one of the great Lenskis; his aria is a highlight of the performance. Kreppel sings Gremin's aria with mellifluous tone while Cvejic brings a sense of humor to Olga. Konetzni and Rössel-Majdan are standouts as well. Peter Klein is a memorable Triquet, singing his song in French and altering the written ending to include some extra high notes I've never heard any other singer interpolate. Not to be outdone, Dermota adds a high B to his final phrase in the party scene. Klobuchar leads a well-paced performance though I was disappointed that he makes a few unnecessary cuts (the women's quartet at the beginning of the opera is cut in half and he trims the end of the Act Three ballroom scene to leave out the final dance.) The ballet must've done some exceptional dancing because they are applauded for nearly two minutes in the party scene.The sound is first-rate. All Onegin fans should have this performance. So what if its sung in German?

Von Matačić is the conductor of this performance, not Klobuchar - apologies to both gentlemen!

Excellent performance but sound distracting.

This is a solid performance of the beloved opera, sung in German by stalwarts of the Vienna ensemble. I bought this recording for Von Matacic, whom I usually find a dynamic conductor. Less so here, and the fabled orchestra makes a fair number of flubs. The standout is Dermota as Lenski; his commercial recordings give little hint that he was capable the committed, passionate vocalism on display here, all tastefully in the frame of his lyric voice.