Mirella Freni's voice was at its fullest and loveliest when this recital was recorded, and she has always been an intelligent and musicianly singer. A feast for her admirers, therefore (more of an ample snack, actually: 43 minutes is scarcely generous measure) and for those of her partner, the full-voiced and stalwart Bonisolli (those who have encountered him only in the theatre will be surprised how often he contrives to sing quietly), but what about Puccinians in general? They may well be a touch disappointed.
Freni's distaste for obvious vocal acting is explained in the brief and eulogistic note accompanying the anthology (no texts are provided, deplorably), and I would not for the world have her break her beautiful line in ''Un bel di'' with emotive gasps or stifled sobs. But when Mimi coquettishly reproves Rodolfo for his inquisitiveness (''Curioso!'') or smilingly complies with his wishes (''Obbedisco, signor'') something in the tone of voice should tell you that she has switched from the lyrical to the conversational mode, and Freni rarely allows this to happen. It robs her singing of a touch of character that would have differentiated her (very full-voiced) Liu from her Butterfly (curiously enough she distorts the vocal line in just the way one doesn't want at the end of ''Tu che di gel sei cinta''). So the impression is of a pleasant concert of pieces that happen to come from operas, rather than the gallery of Puccinian character studies that she could have given us.
The recording is decent enough, the voices rather less forward than is customary these days. What was the point, by the way, in recording the tiny duettino from Gianni Schicchi? It lasts for all of 80 seconds and ends very abruptly. And for a duet album surely Bonisolli could have been persuaded to record Rodolfo's single word of rejoinder (''si'') in ''Si. Mi chiamano Mimi''?'