Debuting baritone Thomas Hampson was outstanding as the Count-he’s very tall and handsome, a fine actor, and his good-sized voice was handled with an adroit technique that made child’s play of the role’s demands.

Birthday anniversaries of composer Camille Saint-Saens (1835), contralto Mary Jarred (1899), sopranos Marcelle Bunlet (1900) and Irmgard Seefried (1919)

Happy 87th birthday soprano Joan Carden
Happy 69th birthday mezzo-soprano Sally Burgess
Happy 61st birthday soprano Christiane Oelze