OP2588. MIGNON, Live Performance, 28 June, 1949, México City, w.Picco Cond. Teatro de las Bellas Artes Ensemble; Giulietta Simionato, Giuseppe di Stefano, Cesare Siepi, Verdad Luz Guajardo, etc. (Italy) 2-Bongiovanni HOC 064/65. - 8007068064007

CRITIC REVIEWS:

"Giulietta Simionato, a leading Italian mezzo-soprano...died on [5 May, 2010] at her home in Rome. She was 99....Ms Simionato was praised for her firm, agile voice, her smooth phrasing, and a vocal range so wide it encompassed the register of a soprano while retaining the meaty lower notes of a mezzo. She was also known for a commanding stage presence that belied her petite stature."

- Margalit Fox, THE NEW YORK TIMES, 7 May, 2010



“Giuseppe di Stefano possessed an especially beautiful voice. It was impossible not to be moved; he truly had the sound of tears in his voice, without being over sentimental. His wonderful piano – and his stirring voice – moved his audience almost beyond endurance.”

- Birgit Nilsson, LA NILSSON, p.116



"Nature would appear to dictate, that in general, tenors are short and portly, baritones are of medium height and stocky, and basses tall and rather spare. In the case of Cesare Siepi he was not only very tall but remarkably good-looking and possessed of a magnificent physique. He was the epitome of the rakish Don Giovanni that became one of his greatest roles, and never less than impressive in the dignified and sometime dominating characters allotted to the operatic bass."

- Alan Bilgora