Andrea Chenier Mailand Live 08/01/1955 | Maria Callas

While Puccini'sTosca became closely identified with Callas, she appeared only rarely in other post-Verdi operas once she had risen to fame. She learned the role of Maddalena for a production at La Scala: Verdi's Il trovatore had been planned, but the star tenor Mario del Monaco engineered a change to Giordano's red-blooded drama of the French revolution. This recording captures the thrill of a first night at Italy's most famous opera house, and Callas traces her character's development - from a spoiled young aristocrat to a self-sacrificing woman in love - in gripping and moving detail.