Because this offering has only one review, I'll jump in with my brief two-cents worth. David R hit the nail on the head in his review. This is truly a "sleeper." It's a performance that I would have passed over in the days of rummaging through obscure recordings in the brick-and-mortar stores of yesteryear. I'm not familiar with any of the principals but all give first class performances. Not only are the singers superlative vocally, but the performance is boisterous and exciting as Aida should be. The sound is not perfect of course considering its age and however it was recorded. But the voices always come through clearly (seem to be in the room with me), and the orchestra is never faint. There is some background noise occasionally, but that's not enough to remove a star.

This is another of Opera Depot's Sleepers: a recording most of us would pass over because it has no star names and it's in Russian. My search for information about Maria Voloshesku was fruitless, but she is a marvelous Aida. She not only has a beautiful voice, but she handles it with skill and finesse. The top C in "O patria mia" is rarely sung with such security and she is fully involved in the drama. She's one of the best exponents of this role I've heard in a while.Garbis Zobian was an Armenian tenor who sang primarily in eastern Europe. His singing is also very beautiful with ringing top notes. One understands why the two women are nuts about him. Zenaida Pally and Peter Stefanescu-Goange were both Romanian singers and they are very exciting. Pally's Judgement scene is a highlight of the performance. Edward Grikurov's conducting is good although his tempo choices sometimes reflect different traditions in this music than we're used to hearing in the West.The sound is excellent with only a few odd moments of distortion or background hum. A short portion of the Aida/Amneris duet is missing from the tape source as is the very end of that scene.All Aida lovers should hear this, if only to hear some great voices and a slightly different musical interpretation.