OTELLO (1887)
Ramón Vinay, Herva Nelli, Giuseppe Valdengo
The NBC Symphony Orchestra and Choruses
conducted by Arturo Toscanini
Recorded 1947, this edition (P) 2009
Pristine Classical PACO033
FLACs, artwork
This is a performance which every lover of the opera has to have. Love him or hate him, Toscanini has an unending ability to surprise: listen to the way he broadens out the tempo for the climax of the storm yet speeds up for the conclusion of the love duet, and the way he plays around with the textures of the Willow Song is quite remarkable. Extraordinary, maybe: perverse, arguably: but effective? Certainly. This, to my mind, is the clearest version of this performance that you’re likely to find, so if you’re choosing between versions then you can pick this one with confidence.
Simon Thompson, MusicWeb International Review