This is a perfectly good company-performance spoilt (I speak for myself) by the casting of the title-role. There may be, must be, many listeners who find Eva Marton an exciting singer in the theatre, where the power of her voice and the energy of her acting are in themselves guarantees of a performance on the grand scale. Nor do her good qualities end there, either 'in the flesh' or on records. But a huge voice gives little pleasure on records unless it is pure and firm; and there is generally a predisposition in favour of subtlety or at least some variety of expressive nuance. Minnie's arrival (''Che cos'e stato?'') immediately warns that firmness of voice may not be the rule; the Bible lesson has one phrase (''e rinnovella in me uno spirito eletto''), sufficiently unusual to be specially noted, in which a certain beauty of tone is pervasive; the solo ''Laggiu nel Soledad'', though it brings a slight smile into the generally severe vocal character, remains a very formal utterance compared with most one has heard. With this, the sheer volume of the singing only amplifies the aural discomfort. The fortissimo high notes at the end of Act 2 are exciting: and that, really, is all. There is very little remission, and for the very first time I began to hear this opera through the ears of good musicians who find it coarse and uncongenial.
That does not prevent recognition of a satisfactory overall performance, even if it limits the enjoyment. It is good to hear Dennis O'Neill, singing with ardour, fine tone and authentic style, likeable in the Act I duet and catching the right ring and conviction in his voice for the apologia pro vita sua. Alain Fondary has the weight of voice and manner to make an apt, impressive Rance. The supporting singers form a creditable ensemble (though the billing of Nick, barman at the Polka, as one of four principals seems odd). Slatkin conducts a well-paced performance, and the studio recording has been effectively produced by Wolfram Graul. The best recommendation remains the Zubin Mehta, with Neblett, Domingo and Milnes on DG.'