One of the prolific Gaetano Donizetti’s lesser-produced masterworks, Poliuto, originally banned from production in Italy in the late 1830s only to return a decade in a French translation, is a story of religious persecution, punishment and marital faithfulness. This live, Antonino Votti conducted 1960 La Scala, Milan performance’s eye-watering, jealousy-inducing cast features Maria Callas, Ettore Bastianini in the vocal prime of his foreshortened career, Franco Corelli and Nicola Zaccaria. Returning to the active catalog, this release is a direct transfer from the master tapes.
