GIGLI, Beniamino: Gigli Edition, Vol. 15: Carnegie Hall Farewell Recitals (1955) (Beniamino Gigli/ Dino Fedri/ Mark Obert-Thorn) (Naxos Historical: 8.111104)

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This final volume of the Naxos Gigli Edition, released to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the great tenor's death, is taken from his Carnegie Hall farewell concerts in April, 1955. Making their first appearance on CD here, these recordings demonstrate that Gigli remained to the end his old, communicative self, still able to pour an immense tranche of emotion into whatever he was singing. For a man his age the overall sound is still remarkable and the honeyed mezza-voce remains a delight, untouched by the passing years. As ever in a Gigli programme, operatic titles are intertwined with more popular material. By and large Gigli kept faith with those pieces he most enjoyed singing and that his public adored. \It was only through my audiences that this exercise of lungs, diaphragm and vocal cords became transmuted for me into a profound spiritual experience. Like a squirrel counting his hoard of nuts in the winter, I treasure their applause in my memory.""