This is one of those performances of Don Carlos that anyone who loves the opera should hear. While not flawless it is very passionate and extremely well-sung, much better overall than most of what we hear in this repertoire today.Let's get a minor negative out of the way first. Barbieri was only 36 when this was performed, but her top (never her greatest asset) was already receding. She leaves out some of the cadenzas to the Veil Song (Votto allows her both verses) to avoid the repeated high As, cuts the climactic high B in the Eboli/Carlo/Rodrigo trio, and ducks the top C-flat in "O don fatale" completely. Nevertheless she is still a force to be reckoned with. Cerquetti is a marvelous Elisabetta, singing with rich, Italianate tone that makes you glad you love opera. Lo Forese was an underrated tenor with a strong top (he only died a few years ago at the age of 100). Check out his thrilling "Di quella pira" on YouTube, sung at the age of 90! Bastianini is so good you'll weep and Siepi is again a fantastic Filippo, well-deserving of the ovation he receives after his big aria. Neri is a terrifying Inquisitor. Votto makes very few cuts and the sound is excellent. I wish Siepi had gotten off his top F# on "Mio padre!" at the end and allowed Cerquetti to be clearly heard on her final high B, but competitiveness gets the best of him.A memorable performance then, sung in a manner we probably won't hear again in our lifetimes.

This is a very satisfying performance. Anything with the great Anita Cerquetti is a collectors item. There are some added bonuses. Lo Forese, the Don Carlos, has a big attractive masculine voice and a bright extension. One wonders why when in the the 50's a voice like this was available we had so much of Gianni Poggi, Miranda Ferraro, and when Callas went into the studio to record Turandot, Eugenio Ferrandi was her inadequate Calaf, when Lo Forese was waiting in the wings. Bastianini is the Rodrigo taking more care here ,I feel , then he did in his later studio recording, and Cesari Siepi is the perfect Fillipo. The admirable Fedora Barbieri, is Eboli. Her voice is, as always, impressive. Here she gives and edgy and forthright version of the princess. The sound is good.

In Verdi, Cerquetti is royalty. Here, she is the grandest Elisabetta. The bass clef is astounding: Bastianini, Siepi, Neri, Washington create unsurpassed beauty and sonority, but also the most human interpretations of their respective roles. Barbieri’s Eboli relishes the pageantry and intrigue. Musically, she ducks the As in the “Canzone del velo” and the Cb in “O don fatale”. Lo Forese partners his colleagues passionately, all vocal ardor and sinew. (See YouTube: Lo Forese in his 90s sings “Di quella pira”!) Votto sets the example for breadth in Verdi.

Siepi superb, Cerquetti very good

Classic Don Carlo ..all principals in fine voice

This is an excellent performance. I expected a lot from Siepi and Neri as Philip and Grand Inquisitor and they deliver. So do Cerquetti, Bastianini and Barbieri and conductor Votto. Tenor Lo Forese is at a very good level too, even if Don Carlo is not the greatest role to sing. He apparently substituted often for Del Monaco and Corelli and was a spinto to dramatic tenor with a round voice and very good high notes.

Anita Cerquetti, whose career was very short, is the greatest Verdi soprano EVER! The other reviewer (Andy) said her voice "shimmers and soars" but it is also HUGE and her interpretation and presence are incredible.Angelo Lo Forese as Carlo is also fantastic and makes me wonder why he is not better-known.Siepi brings out the King's vulnerability.Bastianini and Barbieri are both definitive