Astrid Varnay will forever be associated with her legacy in the great roles of Wagner and Strauss, but hearing her in this performance of Il Trovatore, captured while she was still in her early thirties, one might have assumed that her destiny lay in Verdi. Varnay brings her signature intensity and dramatic commitment to the role while displaying a technique fully capable of meeting the considerable demands Verdi places upon the soprano.

Kurt Baum lacks some of Varnay's Italianate polish, but he nonetheless delivers an exciting performance. Fedora Barbieri is in fine voice as Azucena, bringing a larger-than-life stage presence to the role that never descends into camp.