Bergonzi's Radamès has already appeared several times in Opera Depot's catalogue. Here he is again in Las Palmas 1974 with two up-and-coming Bulgarian singers named Dimitrova and Angelakhova as the women who love him. He is in very good form though (by this time) more limited on top. Dimitrova's rather fast vibrato and sometimes driven top won't appeal to all listeners, but I enjoyed her phrasing and sense of line. She was always an excellent musician. What a pity the last 30 seconds of "O patria mia" are missing! Her formidable voice and presence don't suit Aida as well as they do Amneris; I'm not at all surprised she switched roles later on in her career. Angelakhova makes the most of a less than first-class voice. Her tone is not always steady and some of her phrasing is a little blowsy. Yet she captures Amneris' imperious nature to the core. Her chest register is full and exciting as are her high notes. Mastromei was always a fierce Amonasro and he tears up the stage when he's on it. The two basses are very good as are the High Priestess and the assertive Messenger; I wish we were told who they are. Veltri's leadership is OK, but some of the ensembles are a bit ragged, probably from lack of rehearsal.The sound is mediocre: listenable, but not well-balanced; some of the mics were not well-placed. Nevertheless, fans of the principals will enjoy this performance. We simply don't have singers like these in this repertoire anymore.

Not the greatest recorded sound, but what a wonderful performance.

Good performance.