Manon / Beverly Sills, Gedda, Souzay, Bacquier; Rudel

Beverly Sills's singing career is mainly remembered for her bel canto operas and bubbly talk-show appearances. But the title role of Manon was one of her very finest efforts, and it's heard here in an all-around excellent recording. Caught here in her prime, Sills's thrilling singing technique illuminated her considerable theatrical mind with brilliant clarity. So while this is a spectacularly sung Manon, Sills also maintains a sense of childlike delight that keeps the character's greedier moments from becoming unduly repulsive. It's a great performance. Her leading man, Nicolai Gedda, sounds a bit vocally aged, but it's still Gedda (which is something). As Manon's father, the great Gerard Souzay makes one of his few full-opera recorded appearances. Conductor Julius Rudel leads a big, red-blooded, almost-Italianate performance that's also alert to how incredibly well-wrought and inventive this score is. --David Patrick Stearns