FIRST CD OF ‘L’ELISIR D’AMORE’ BUT . . .

DONIZETTI: “L’ELISIR D’AMORE.” Katia Ricciarelli, Jose Carreras, Leo Nucci, Domenico Trimarchi; Orchestra and Chorus of Italian Radio, Turin, conducted by Claudio Scimone. Philips 412 714-2 (two compact discs).

Profound disappointment marks the first compact disc recording of Donizetti’s durable sentimental comedy. Scimone presides over a robust performance characterized by endless tempo flexibility and excessive, if often endearing, spotlighting of individual instruments. Yet the singing frequently lacks charm and finesse. A diet of Calafs and Don Joses has coarsened Carreras’ once pristine lyric tenor, although “Una furtiva lagrima” floats on sustained pianissimos. Ricciarelli barely invests Adina with the requisite coquetry and often lags behind the beat. Nucci makes the roguish Belcore a suave fellow, while Trimarchi’s quack Dulcamara huffs and grunts in provincial fashion. Bright, spacious recording (the first disc accommodates 71 minutes of music with no audible deterioration).