La Bohème

This early 1960s recording of Puccini's "La Boheme" is one of the better versions of this venerable opera. The team of Robert Merrill and Richard Tucker worked well together in a number of operas (e.g., "La Traviata"). They also work well here. The young Anna Moffo had the proper voice for Mimi and was one of the better actresses among sopranos at the time. Erich Leinsdorf did a nice job conducting, allowing the singing to emerge. Finally, Mary Costa, singing Musetta, sings well, too.

Richard Tucker had one of the great voices of his time; his voice was big and he used it to effect. His mannerisms can sometimes be a bit annoying (his crying at the end, as some note); nonetheless, he is one of the most formidable tenors of this century and his performance in this recording is well done. Robert Merrill was a prized baritone, who brought good characterization and a solid, dependable singing technique to his roles. Anno Moffo, still in the earlier phase of her career, has a lush lyric soprano voice. She did best in the operas of Verdi and Puccini (her Violetta in "La Traviata" is terrific, for instance). She has the proper voice for Mimi; she was a fine actress as well as singer "on stage," and her third act singing is wonderful. Mary Costa's portrayal of Musetta is also a plus. Her version of "Musetta's Waltz" stands up well after these many years.

Some of the wonderful moments: the arias and then the duet between Mimi (Moffo) and Rodolfo (Tucker) in Act I. "Si, mi chiamano Mimi" is nicely sung by Moffo. Tucker's "Che gelida manina" is richly sung, while their duet following thereafter is also an accomplished version. The third act, with the interactions among Mimi, Marcello, and Rodolfo, too is particularly well sung.

All in all, this is a version of "La Boheme" that stands up well over time. The cast is excellent; their voices are in their prime; the conducting is skillful, allowing for the performance to unfold naturally. There are other terrific performances, featuring Pavarotti/Freni, Gedda/Freni (even better than Pavarotti/Freni, in my view), Domingo/Caballe, and de los Angelos/Bjoerling, to name a few classics. But the Tucker/Moffo/Merrill/Leinsdorf version stands up well against these other versions.

I've been listening to this recording for 25 years, first on vinyl, then on the initial CD transfer. Now I've purchased the "Living Stereo" remaster in memory of the recently passed Anna Moffo. I can't help but think of the Commodores' tribute to Marvin Gaye: "Gonna be some sweet sounds coming down on the night shift."

This is glorious singing and good, old-fashioned, straight-ahead recording. Leinsdorf reveals a gentler side in his delicately precise conducting, and the ensemble of the principles is remarkable. How I wish I could go back in time and attend performances at the Met when one could see the likes of Moffo, Tucker and Merrill live!

The new remaster sounds very good to me, clean and open. There are brief moments of distortion in the loudest ensemble passages, then again, who but Decca's engineers could capture Merril's voice at full throttle?

If you're a fan of this era of great singing and recording, treat yourself. And if like me 25 years ago, you find yourself falling in love with Anna Moffo, treat yourself to some of her other recordings: Callas's La Boheme where she sings my favorite Musetta, La Traviata, Rigoletto, Madame Butterfly, the Stokowski album, Marriage of Figaro with Schwarzkopf, etc. etc.

Puccini's La Boheme was never my favorite opera of his, though admittedly the music is beautiful and touching. To this day it remains a perennial favorite in every major opera house. There's an abundance of studio recordings out there - Maria Callas, Renata Tebaldi, Victoria De Los Angeles, Mirella Freni and Montserrat Caballe all sang successful Mimis in studio recordings while Carlo Bergonzi, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo sang wonderful Rodolfos. But this RCA Victor recording digitally remastered for the Living Stereo sound, is a fine example of La Boheme as it was performed in the early 60's at the Metropolitan Opera and elsewhere. It's a very old-school Boheme, with natural voices producing beautiful sounds, and with an orchestra that really delivers. Ultimately, this is a superb Boheme but I much prefer the Pavarotti/Mirella Freni recording under Karajan or the Domingo/Caballe recording with James Levine conducting. But here's why this one is noteworthy:

Richard Tucker and Anna Moffo: As Rodolfo and Mimi, they are singing with a kind of virtuosity that is not found anymore. Again, they have natural voices and the studio recording does not play tricks on the ear so we are hearing authentic beauty of tone that is not artificially produced. While many criticize Richard Tucker as Rodolfo by claiming he's too mature sounding and old for the part, I think he's miraculous. He is passionte, his operatic technique is grandiose and he has enough experience as a singer by this time in his career to comprehend all the technicalities of the music for his part. Consequently, his "Ghe Gelida Manina", his duet with Mimi and his final scene are especially moving. That being said, I can't help but note that he may be trying too hard and is self-consciously dramatic. His loud weeping at the end sounds affected and melodramatic and borders on the risable. Anna Moffo, too, is trying too hard and is equally self-conscious in her performance, not in her singing, which is absolutely perfect, but in her coughing, which she overdoes. This is the one Mimi that coughs too much! Does anyone know what I mean ? Of course, all opera cognoscentes know that Mimi is stricken with Tubercolosis and we have to hear cough in the opera, but not excessively so. Other than the annoying coughing, Anna Moffo is the perfect Mimi. Her flexible, lyric voice is tailor-made for Mimi's music. It may not be a lyrico spinto voice like Renata Tebaldi or Mirella Freni, but it's a voice that is nuanced and fully captures the vulnerability and tragic essence of Mimi's character. It is also a big voice, or at least it sounds that way to me. And she has thrilling mezzo di voce, shading her voice and lowering it now and then to emphasize the drama. Her dying scene is unbeatable. Dying amidst beautiful music and singing, I only wish I were old enough to have seen Anna Moffo on stage as Mimi, or Violetta, or Lucia. Her physicality and acting abilities made her stand out among her contemporaries- she was supermodel thin, beautiful (Audrey-Hepburn like actually) and consequently able to portray her tragic heroines more convincingly than other more portly sopranos who did not look like dying heroines.

Mary Costa as Musetta: Mary Costa was a versatile singer. Other than singing operatic roles, she sang popular music during the 50's and 60's. She was the singing voice of Princess Aurora in the 1959 film Sleeping Beauty from Walt Disney Pictures. Knowing this, it's amazing to hear her as Musetta, a role that can be somewhat vocally demanding. The role is more on the coloratura side but it is difficult to sing. The waltz aria "Quando M'vo Soletta" is tricky. Costa essays the music with great beauty and delicacy. She's even dramatic, on equal grounds with Anna Moffo. She doesn't force her voice, again its all natural.

Erich Leinsdorf conducts with supreme artistry. Never before has Puccini's music been more subtle and more beautiful. However the darker aspects to this story (supposedly it's verisimo, a slice of real life) are not fully rendered. The music is far too beautiful and well-executed to have a haunting effect. Even Mimi's Death is beautiful to hear! But it's brilliant and Leinsdorf is always a thoughtful conductor, knowing how to step up the drama and bring out a lot of beauty from the original score. He would work with Anna Moffo on studio recording again- for a beautiful but underrated Madama Butterfly.

I had high hopes for this La Boheme after so many great reviews, but it did disappoint me somewhat in 2 areas. Richard Tucker sounded a little too cotton mouthed some of the time the singers in the final act distorted during load passages. At the end of the Act 1 Tucker opps for the lower note (perhaps a low C instead of a high C) when he and Moffo walk off together, however, they do blend very well together. In Tucker's favor is the passion he gives to the role making him emotionally convincing with a heart wrenching final scene. Anna Moffo gives a superb performance of Mimi and Robert Merrill an invigorating Marcello. Overall, this is a very good performance. Yes, it did make me cry. The recording is very good as well (except for the last act as noted above).

If you want to hear this opera in other really great performances get Pavarotti and Schippers (Opera D'Oro # 1143 ASIN: B000000UOE); Bjorling and Beechem (EMI #67753 ASIN: B000063UM0 ); and Domingo and Solti recording (RCA #39496 ASIN: B000009NIW ).

This is one of the best performances of "La Boheme" on records, and an essential one for fans of soprano Anna Moffo.

In 1961, when this recording was made, Anna Moffo was a young, beautiful woman (she was still in her 20's) who had a gorgeous, and flawless, lyric-coloratura soprano voice that extended spectacularly to high E flat. Moreover, she was gifted with a delicate dramatic art that infused her characterizations with heartbreaking joy and pathos without ever going over the top. Unlike any of her rivals at the time, most of whom I admire, Moffo looked and sounded exactly like the operatic heroines she portrayed on stage. Her luminous qualities come through on audio recordings as well, such as this exceptional "Boheme". Her act three performance is unmatched even by the likes of Maria Callas, Victoria de los Angeles or Renata Tebaldi, the other great Mimi's of the era.

It is somewhat unfortunate that Moffo was often paired with Richard Tucker. The latter was a celebrated dramatic tenor who was much older than Moffo and whose voice was not right for the role of Mimi's lover Rodolfo. I can only fathom what the glorious results might have been had Moffo been paired with the equally ravishing voice of Jussi Bjorling or Carlo Bergonzi. Nevertheless, Tucker does effectively modulate his enormous voice to sing as lyrically and with as much youthful ardour as can be expected from him. In the act one exit of the two lovers, the voices of the principals blend with perfect harmony and volume to extraordinary effect.

The rest of the cast is the most outstanding that has ever been assembled for a recording of this opera. While every member makes a fine contribution, two of them are specially worthy of mention: baritone Robert Merrill sings and acts magnificently as Marcello, and soprano Mary Costa is the perfect Mussetta vocally and temperamentally. Erich Leinsdorf leads the Rome Opera Orchestra and Chorus in a performance that is both spirited and nuanced in equal measure.

The digitally remastered "Living Stereo" sound is astonishing for the breadth and clarity of its soundstage, as well as its musicality. Listening to the CD's, as reproduced through an NAD T-550 DVD/CD player, an NAD 317 integrated amp and a pair of Paradigm Monitor 7 speakers, I felt as though my listening room had opened up into a panorama of aural reality. There was no hint whatsoever of either harshness or master tape hiss.

This recording of "Boheme" may not displace the justly famous one of 1956 on EMI with Victoria de los Angeles and Jussi Bjorling, but it remains, almost without reservation, a "Boheme" for the ages! It would be a shame if it becomes forgotten.