Search - Giuseppe Verdi, Angelo Questa, Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della RAI :: Aida: Turin 1956

The best Amonasro on records?

Mike Simonsen | San Francisco, CA | 04/20/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Well, maybe, but it's certainly the loudest. Giangiacomo Guelfi could literally stop the show driving audiences into a frenzy with his "Non sei mia figlia! Dei Faraoni tu sei la schiava!" and I can't think of another baritone who could.



Gobbi was nastier, Merrill sang better, Cappuccilli had longer breath, but Guelfi was massively powerful. There are few acts of aggression quite so in-your-face in all recorded opera.



Anyway the women are OK. Franco Corelli is young and vibrant. Giulio Neri, often so good elsewhere, is not at his best here.



But buy this for the Amonasro.



And don't forget the earlier Cetra set with Mancini, Simionato, Filippeschi and Panerai, under Gui. That's a hot one, too."