PUCCINI: “Suor Angelica.”

Lucia Popp, Marjana Lipovsek; Chorus of the Bavarian Radio; Munich Radio Orchestra conducted by Giuseppe Patane. Eurodisc 7806-2-RC(compact disc). This last panel of Eurodisc’s “Trittico,” and the weakest performance of the three, acquires its Italianate aura from Patane’s leisurely, authoritative leadership, rather than from any members of its mid-European cast. Popp’s sinning nun brings dramatic credibility to a narrative severely lacking in that quality, but the breathy slides and compromised top notes mark a decline in this gifted soprano’s career. Lipovsek’s princess supplies frayed, hysterical vocalism, where the role demands stony imperiousness. Eurodisc’s limited banding is no help.