La zapaterita (Alonso)

María del Carmen Ramirez, Josefina Meneses, Antonio Blancas. Coro Cantores y Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid, c. Moreno Buendia
RCA ND74203

Conchita Panadés, Charito Leonís, Antonio Medio. Gran Orquesta Sinfónica, c. Francisco Alonso
Homokord HC007

Alonso's diverting 18th century pastiche centres on no less a luminary than Casanova. Choice lies between the original cast recording - very well recorded for its day (1941) with Medio on charming form as the Great Romantic - and RCA's 1989 digital version. Recommendable though this is, RCA caught Blancas at the woolly end of his career; and for poise, point and even recorded clarity the early performance wins cosily. However, with Homokord CD's currently almost impossible to get hold of, the RCA is more than just a useful stop-gap.

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