Verdi - Falstaff / Bruson, Ricciarelli, Nucci, Hendricks, Gonzalez, Valentini-Terrani, Giulini
The master of Italian tragedy finished his career unexpectedly with a comedy, and a comedy in the great tradition of his hero, Shakespeare: light, scintillating, utterly absorbing, and probably Verdi's most musically sophisticated work. This exciting live recording by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, with Renato Bruson in the title role, is conducted by the great Carlo Maria Giulini.--Joshua Cody