MOZART 'Don Giovanni 'Highlights LP

VPC85059

Don Giovanni comes from the autumn of 1959. Otto Klemperer was slated to conduct this recording (and Sir Thomas Beecham had been strongly considered), but three days into the sessions, he fell ill. Producer Walter Legge lost no time in securing Carlo Maria Giulini. Giulini was an excellent choice. He was a 'singer's conductor' and he was sensitive to both the score's drama and its comedy. It's a middle-of-the-road interpretation in the best way: neither excessively serious nor too frothy, and it is always stylish. Don Giovanni: Eberhard Wächter baritone | Donna Anna: Joan Sutherland soprano | Don Ottavio: Luigi Alva tenore Donna Elvira: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf soprano | Leporello: Giuseppe Taddei baritono | Zerlina: Graziella Sciutti soprano Philharmonia Chorus - Roberto Benaglio, chorus master | Philharmonia Orchestra Carlo Maria Giulini, conductor Libretto: Lorenzo da Ponte after Giovanni Bertati | Recorded: 7 15.X & 23 24.XI.1959, Abbey Road Studios, London.