EMI's 1955 recording of Madama Butterfly features three of the brightest stars of the era: Maria Callas, Nicolai Gedda, and Herbert von Karajan. Callas hadn't yet sung Cio-Cio-San on-stage when she made this recording, but she fully inhabits the role and brings penetrating insight to it. She's completely convincing as an adolescent, a remarkable feat in this role, which requires a voice of considerable heft. Callas beautifully captures Butterfly's vulnerability and sensitivity with an astonishingly youthful-sounding vocal freshness, and she's compellingly poignant as Butterfly's dilemma becomes clear to her. The only caveat about her performance is the intonation and purity of her sustained notes above the staff and several of them are painfully strident. Gedda is thoroughly caddish as Pinkerton, and he sings with passion, but his voice shows some strain in the upper register.
Mario Borriello is a resonant, compassionate Sharpless, and Lucia Danieli sings with warmth and security as Suzuki. Karajan, leading the Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, has a sure grasp of the score's dramatic contour and makes this a highly charged reading. The orchestral playing is of the highest order. The recorded sound is clear and balance is good, but it shows its vintage; it's somewhat cramped and lacks depth.
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