Enjoying a meteoric rise to operatic fame in the 50s and 60s, before retiring from the stage in 1976, the angelic beauty of Anna Moffo voice could not be denied for the better part of her career. To mark the 10th anniversary of Moffo's death, Sony Classical has released the limited edition 12-CD boxset, Complete RCA Recital Albums -- primarily consisting of work from her heyday in the early 60s.
While it was no secret at the time of her retirement in her mid-forties that Anna Moffo's voice was no longer up to the challenge of performing live on stage, Sony's latest boxset celebrating her life and career, Complete RCA Recital Albums, draws almost exclusively from her golden years:
"The box set finally brings together the 10 recital albums that Moffo recorded for RCA between 1960 and 1974, five of them making their first appearance on CD, newly mastered from the original analog tapes using 24bit/96kHz technology.
"Rounding out the collection are two compilation discs: an original 1973 album of Great Love Duets from Opera; and a brand-new compilation of arias from Moffo's various complete RCA opera recordings."
Of her early retirement, Moffo explained to the New York Times in 1977 that more than just her voice failing her, the toll of more than 2-decades in show bussiness finally became more than her body could bear (via BBC):
"I was working much too hard and travelling too much. I got mixed up in TV, films and things like that.
"Psychologically I was miserable and always alone. But I don't think I was singing that badly until I reached a point where I was just so tired."
To get your copy of Anna Moffo's Complete RCA Recital Albums head over to Amazon or Presto Classical today, before it's too late.
