Puccini's "Il Trittico" (Il Tabarro, Suor Angelica, and Gianni Schicchi),
is a set of three mini-operas written to be performed in one evening.  Suor
Angelica is a favorite of mine, though the other two operas have some nice
moments, notably Schicchi with its plum, "O Mio Babbino Caro." (Available
on EMI as a 3-disc set--#56587.)

The new recording features the Angelica of Cristina Gallardo-Domas.  She
has a lush and dark voice in the lower register, (w/out too much undue
vibrato), and a light and beautifully creamy voice in the upper register.
Antonio Pappano and the Philharmonia Orchestra provide a sensitive and lush
accompaniment.

My favorite among modern performances was with Lucia Popp/Patane, available
on Eurodisc.  Lucia's girlish voice adds to the innocence and naivete of
her character, yet she strains in the dramatic climaxes.  Patane and Popp
are just slightly too fast in the lovely third act, (which includes the
famous intermezzo), and the music, some of it Puccini's most beautiful
IMHO, isn't allowed to breath as much as it could.  The orchestral/choral
outbursts are explosive and jarring rather than expansive and awesome.

Pappano offers a more expansive reading, excellently captured by the EMI
recording team.  Gallardo-Domas sounds every bit as girlish as Popp, yet
the former handles the high-notes, (both loud and impossibly soft), with
ease.  The blending of chorus and soprano in the finale works beautifully.
You can relax and luxuriate in this performance with total confidence.

Oh, and how are the death groans? Neither Popp nor Gallardo-Domas do
the two groans in the apotheosis very well.  Popp sounds like she has
indigestion, and Gallardo-Domas starts up in the stratosphere and descends
over the course of 4 beats, sounding like a distant siren.  Oh well, the
best music has passed anyway.  (Freni does them the best on her recent
London recording, but her singing is too strident for my tastes.)

John Smyth