Search - Giuseppe Verdi, Tullio Serafin, Orchestra e coro del Teatro alla Scala :: Verdi: Rigoletto

Very Emotionally Involving

Jeffrey Lipscomb | Sacramento, CA United States | 07/20/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Few complete recordings "Rigoletto" have the same intense level of emotional involvement as this one. Gobbi gives one of the great dramatic performances of any title role in opera. Sure, there are others who brought more resplendent voices to the role (i.e., Taddei and the 55 year old but magnificent Ricardo Stracciari), but neither of them gives a portrayal that is anywhere near as moving as Gobbi's. As for Callas: what is it about the quality of her voice that so causes your heart to go out to her immediately in sympathy? There is something so vulnerable, genuine and three-dimensional about her Gilda - it's hard to put into words. As for di Stefano, has anyone else so perfectly captured the Duke's mixture of charm and cruelty? And if that were not enough, Serafin provides us with one of the finest-conducted Rigoletto out there.



As far as I'm concerned, this is a top candidate if you are choosing a sole version of this Verdi masterpiece."

This is a great Rigoletto

adubash | Chapel Hill, NC | 01/08/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'd like to compare two of my favorite Rigoletto sets - this one (Serafin/Gobbi) and the Guilini/Cappuccilli one. First though, let me say, that I first heard rigoletto with the Pavarotti/Sutherland set, and I hated it. I didn't get into it at all, and didn't think it was a very good opera. Sure, the singing was great, but it was all very superficial, and frankly, gaudy. Then I heard the Serafin/Gobbi rigoletto, and it was like a revelation. I would advise you to stay away from the Pavarotti/Sutherland set.Anyway, Gobbi and cappuccilli are both great rigoletto's - i prefer Gobbi's interpretation, but both are marvelous singing-actors; they both give us an immensely tragic protrayal of the cursed jester. Contrubas (on the Guilini/Cappuccilli set) is an exquisite Gilda - her caro nome is divine and the last scene with rigoletto when she is dying is heartbreaking. That said, nothing can compare to Callas' Gilda - at the time of the recording (1956), she was in great voice, and she tackles caro nome beautifully - in callas' caro nome, I hear a vulnerable woman desperately in love, yet scared. in sutherland's, all I hear is bird calls. Also, the gilda-rigoletto duets are outstanding - callas and gobbi always worked very well off each other, and this is a wonderful example of their musical rapport.Both Domingo and di Stefano are wonderful duke's - domingo's portrayal is more affecting and while it is obvious the duke is a playboy, you get the feeling that it is possible he might have actually loved Gilda. Di Stefano's duke is just an all-out jerk, but wonderfully sung.As for the conducting - Guilini's is more dramatic and powerful, whereas Serafin's is more tragic and slower-paced. At times, the slow pace works well, like during the quartet, which is just magic. In other parts I found myself wishing serafin would give us a little more "thrust." Overall, Guilini is better.In other words, get both sets! But don't touch the Pavarotti/Sutherland set - not even with a ten-foot pole. If you buy it as your first set, t will ruin rigoletto for you."