Enrico Caruso - Una furtiva lagrima (1904)

During the month of August, Dead Tenors' Society is honoring the memory of the great Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921). A selection of "Desert Island Discs" will be showcased, giving an example of the Caruso recordings that I cannot live without. You may have your own favorites...here is one of mine. Without hesitation, I would opine that one of Caruso's absolute finest performances is this early recording of "Una furtiva lagrima" from Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore. This piano accompanied rendition, recorded in New York in February of 1904, captured Caruso in his early prime. What sets this version apart from the tenor's three other recordings of this aria (two in 1902 and the final one in 1911) is the fact that Caruso devotes two discs to this aria. This allows him to take a leisurely tempo and really luxuriate in the aria. I honestly don't believe that there is, ever has been or ever will be a performance of this aria that surpasses this recording. The ravishing tone, the remarkable attention to musical detail, the exemplary diction, the seductive rubato...all of these components combine to make this one of Caruso's most stunning recordings. Some thirty years after first hearing this recording, it still leaves me in awe. I hope that you will find a similar experience as you listen.