This recording by the inimitable Giuseppe Di Stefano singing the aubade from Édouard Lalo’s Le roi d’Ys is from a recital in Chicago in 1949. His voice is fresh and rich. He sings the piece in his unique style. Vainement ma bien aimee  Below is a video of the tenor singing the same aria 24 years later. His voice at this time was a whisper of what it had been.

For comparison here’s the same aria sung by Miguel Fleta, the first Calaf in Puccini’s Turandot. The tenor was as famous for his filatura in his time as was Di Stefano in his.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ohxBJ6g5RA&feature=related]

Here is the great French lyric tenor Henri Legay singing the song. This singer had virtually his entire career in Paris. His interpretation was probably what Lalo had in mind. Vainement, ma bien-aimée