Opera Vinyl Records: Complete Recordings, Recitals and Operettas
Opera, operetta and classical singing on vinyl: what's here
This page gathers opera vinyl records, operetta and classical vocal recordings: complete operas in box sets, highlights, aria recitals and albums by great voices. The catalog runs from historic recordings by Beniamino Gigli, Maria Callas, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Nicolai Gedda to current singers such as Jonas Kaufmann, Diana Damrau and Bryn Terfel, along with Plácido Domingo and Andrea Bocelli. Conductors such as Riccardo Muti and Nikolaus Harnoncourt are here too. Each record page lists offers from several partner stores so you can compare editions of the same recording.
Buying opera on vinyl: box sets, pressings and condition
A complete opera usually takes three or four discs, packaged as a box set with a libretto. That is the first thing to check on a used copy: are all the discs there, and is the libretto included? An incomplete set loses most of its appeal. Check each disc's condition too, since voices and quiet passages quickly reveal scratches and surface noise, and powerful high notes near the end of a side can distort.
The most sought-after pressings are early stereo Decca, EMI and Deutsche Grammophon copies from the 1950s and 1960s. For new copies, labels such as Speakers Corner reissue some classic recordings as audiophile pressings. For listening, an ordinary later pressing in good condition is often the most sensible choice, and by far the cheapest.
- complete set: every disc plus the libretto
- mono or stereo depending on recording year
- condition of each side
- the cast and conductor, not just the work
Benchmark opera recordings to know
Among the first great successes of opera on record were Enrico Caruso's 78s, made for Victor from 1904 on. In the LP era, some recordings became benchmarks: Maria Callas's "Tosca" conducted by Victor de Sabata for EMI in 1953, Wagner's "Ring" conducted by Georg Solti for Decca between 1958 and 1965, the first complete studio recording of the cycle, and Herbert von Karajan's "La Bohème" with Luciano Pavarotti and Mirella Freni on Decca in 1972. For operetta, Johann Strauss's "Die Fledermaus" and Franz Lehár's "The Merry Widow" have been recorded many times.
How to choose the right version
Any major opera exists in dozens of recordings. Start with the singer or conductor you care about, then check the year: a 1950s mono recording can offer a legendary performance with dated sound. To get started, an aria recital by a great tenor or soprano lets you hear several works on a single record. The Classical Music collection then opens up symphonies, concertos and sonatas.
