At the Metropolitan in the second half of the last century, the core Italian repertoire was dominated by a formidable triumvirate of stars: soprano Leontyne Price, tenor Plácido Domingo and baritone Sherrill Milnes. Two of their most memorable recordings were set down by RCA in London in the early 1970s, both conducted by Erich Leinsdorf. “Price, the supreme Verdi soprano of her time,” declared the BBC Music Magazine, “is unsurpassed as Aida … [with] Domingo and Milnes on top form and Grace Bumbry as a formidable Amneris.” Gramophone also lauded Leinsdorf’s contribution: “He catches the grandeur of the public scenes, the delicacy of the intimate ones and carefully judges the weight and pace of each scene.”

Cast:
- Aida: Leontyne Price
- Radamès: Plácido Domingo
- Amneris: Grace Bumbry
- Amonasro: Sherrill Milnes
- Ramphis: Ruggero Raimondi
- Il Re di Egitto: Hans Sotin
- Una Sacerdotessa: Joyce Mathis
- Un Messaggero: Bruce Brewer