I wish I had the time to write reviews of every Opera Depot recording I purchase. I am doing so for this recording because I enjoyed it so much. I don’t have a lot to add to the product description or the other reviewers’ comments, but Sills is so wonderful in this performance. I didn’t buy it sooner because I already have several other live recordings of Sills in Traviata, but I’m very happy to have added this performance to my collection.

The exquisite artistry of Beverly Sills is on full display. The usual City Opera choice for Violetta was Patricia Brooks but here we can experience Sills' elegant, feminine take on the role, a miracle of vocal grace and limpid expression. If forced to live with just this Violetta I would have no complaints. John Stewart's appealingly plangent tenor makes for a decent Alfredo and Dominic Cossa is but an average Germont. Julius Rudel leads sympathetically and restores the pizzicato accompaniment to Dei miei bollenti spirit. All the standard cuts are in effect. The sound, presumably taken from the audience, is of almost broadcast quality.

I first heard this performance on a cassette that included Rudel' s announcement that Sills would sing this performance in place of another singer who wasn't available (I think it was Patricia Brooks). It was a last minute deal and Sills had not rehearsed with the cast, let alone with the orchestra. You would never guess it from this recording. Sills and Rudel are as one. Her Act One scena is terrific with a melting "Ah, forse e lui" and dazzling "Sempre libera", capped with a strong E-flat. But it's her responses to her partners that is really memorable. She and Stewart and then Cossa really listen to each other. She sings with such pathos that the audience is with her all the way. Sills herself loved doing comedy, but I always thought she was better as a tragedienne. There are a few shrill moments yet the voice was still in good condition if no longer the instrument of purity it had been only a few years earlier.Stewart is a very good Alfredo and Cossa a finer Germont than some bigger names across the plaza. The supporting cast is excellent and Rudel paces the evening beautifully.The sound is from a very good in-house tape, the voices only slightly recessed. It's easy to forget why Sills was considered such a treasure at the NYCO and elsewhere. Hear this performance and be well-reminded!