Having just completed a sold-out run of performances of Alfano's Cyrano de Bergerac at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Domingo is sticking with the Italian verismo for this new recording of Puccini's Edgar.

It is Puccini's first full-length opera, and the big surprise is how vibrant its Wagnerian orchestration sounds in the hands of Alberto Veronesi and the Orchestra dell'Academia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.

An earlier recording featured Carlo Bergonzi in the title role, but this new performance, which is also a new role for Domingo (and his last in the Puccini repertoire), makes a far better case for its revaluation. Without doubt, the ridiculous story about a soldier called Edgar, who is torn between his love for an exotic gypsy, Tigrana, and a wet village girl, Fidelia, is responsible for its absence from the theatre.

This new recording reveals the wonderful invention of the score, which always sets the scene with careful pointing of detail and contains many memorable encounters between characters rather than full-blown duets. The first act finale is an astonishing concerted piece for the whole cast, involving a sword fight between Edgar and his rival, Frank. Here, the orchestra is in especially good form, the magnificent horns and sizzling strings turning up the dramatic temperature to amazing effect.

Domingo's assumption of the title role is a reminder of his prowess in the Italian romantic repertoire. It is an almost flawless account of a rather taxing role, and easily as good as his earlier encounters with this rare Puccini repertoire (for instance, Le villi). He still has the power to command situations with large masses; the cry of 'Che fu?' ('What has happened?') at the start of the first act finale reminds me a little of Otello's cry of 'Abbasso le spade!' ('Put down your swords!') and is sung with the same sort of attack. Witness his aria 'Orgia, chimera dall'occhio vitreo' for a taste of the trademark Domingo magic: that glorious, golden tone. In every way, this is a satisfying performance that encompasses passion, violence, tenderness and pain.

Juan Pons is the ideal counterpart as Frank, Fidelia's brother: like Domingo, a veteran stage performer with a sense of the dramatic. When the two men are in conflict in the first act, the studio recording has the atmosphere of a live performance. Pons' performance has been criticised elsewhere, and I've witnessed his live singing with disappointment on occasion myself in the past. But here he is at his finest, showing an awareness of the text and providing emotional depth in his first act aria, for instance.

His sister Fidelia is played by Adriana Damato. She's new to me, but could prove a great find: her controlled vibrato and fluid phrasing are ideal for Puccini's lush orchestration. Her rival Tigrana is played by Marianna Cornetti, whose dark-chocolate mezzo is ideal for the exotic Tigrana. She's especially good in the second act, when Edgar leaves her and returns to battle with his former enemy, and the third, when she kills Fidelia.

Alberto Veronesi conducts the score with such conviction that you can fondly imagine it be a masterpiece whilst listening; as Julian Budden writes in the revealing liner notes, the opera has an unexpected maturity about it.

There could surely be no better tribute to Domingo in this important year than this recording – let's hope that there are more on the cards!

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