This is a gem from the Karajan catalog. He was a very great Verdi conductor, his orchestra was the best in the world--there are no reservations aobut everything on this CD. It stands above similar compioations by Sinopoli and Abbado, although they are very, very good also. A side by side comparison with the Abbado, by the way, indicates how profoundly the Berlin sound changed after Karajan's departure. I found it easier to grasp why so many veterans were downcast; Abbado's sound sacrificed the maigsterial quality Karajan had cultivated for decades, in favor of a leaner texture that has its own virtues. But when you also add Karajan's subtle, detailed imaginaiton in these well-known Verdi snippets, the result is breathtaking. Buy it now
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