Product: Verdi - Otello (1959)
Rating: 5.0
a must-have
no one who cares about opera should miss the chance to see and hear mario del monaco and tito gobbi together "live" as otello and iago, roles in which they were unsurpassed in their time.it's true that this dvd's audio and video quality don't match modern standards, but for a 1959 tv broadcast they're perfectly fine, and the theatricality of the stars will sweep you away. del monaco and gabriella tucci as desdemona sing a ravishing "gia nella notte densa" that will surprise anyone who has dismissed del monaco as relentlessly loud.necessary caveats: the embedded japanese subtitles are ever-present and can't be removed, and the video for otello"s "ora e per sempre addio" is missing (we see a series of stills of del monaco as the audio plays). despite its marks of age, this is the most satisfying "otello" on commercial dvd, and until the domingo-freni-cappuccilli performance under carlos kleiber at la scala from 1976 gets a legit video release, it's likely to remain so.