Turandot meets her match - Gina Cigna v. Francesco Merli

Gina Cigna and Francesco Merli in the riddle scene from Turandot. This first recording of Turandot featured the 37 year old Gina Cigna with her towering 'burning' ice cold dramatic soprano, perfect matched by the 50 year old Merli and his dark rich heroic tenor. They set the standard and today we can still see their influence on the interpreters of their respective roles.