Enrico Caruso (tenor) - Luna d'estate (Mazzola & Tosti) (1916)

Описание: I wasn't intending to upload another Caruso title this evening, but after listening to the great tenor's rendition of 'Ombra mai fu,' I changed my mind.

'Luna d'estate' is one of my favourite records of Caruso in song. Aida Favia-Artsay tells us that the song involves 'a summer moon, a dreamy soul, two magic eyes and a rosebud mouth.' Its tune is precisely what you would expect from Paolo Tosti, who was a master in his field. And the singing is wonderful beyond belief. Caruso sings as if he has infinite resources, and we are left astonished at both the beauty and the power of his voice.

The recording was made at Camden on 5 February 1916. Everything was just about as good as one could get on that day. Caruso himself was in top form. The recording quality was superb for 1916: it almost approaches early electric quality. There is also excellent balance between Caruso and the orchestra, which is particularly well-focused. (Balance and clarity of the accompaniment would have been a great challenge, with Caruso using one horn and the orchestra using at least one other). And the orchestral accompaniment, conducted by Walter B. Rogers, is also well-arranged and well-played.

The only disappointment results from the quality of my copy of HMV DA 120, from which I made this transfer. Although it is the best I have been able to find in many years of collecting, it is not pristine and is somewhat 'swishy.' But everything else is so good that I can ignore that!