Verdians: Renata Tebaldi

Renata Tebaldi was born on 1 February 1922.

I am a hardcore orfanella callasiana, so it is not surprising that I, perhaps unfairly, tend to neglect Renata Tebaldi, whom I generally find stucchevole and too ladylike for my taste.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I heard this ferocious, balls-to-the-wall 1951 performance of music from Giovanna d’Arco. (1951 marked the fiftieth anniversary of Verdi’s death.)

Along with Tebaldi, you will hear Rolando Panerai and the great Carlo Bergonzi, who had recently made the transition from baritone to tenor.

Fierce stuff!