This opens blissfully with Lehmann radiant of voice and spirit. Then Leider, pure and firm, tells Kundry's story of Herzeleide with a plausibility that on this clear transfer is suddenly seen to be an intriguing piece of thoughtful characterization. Then comes Margarethe Teschemacher. Now, I can see that the compiler, having come upon this broadcast performance, may feel for it with an almost proprietorial enthusiasm, but, granted some impressive features (the assured top notes, the vivid recording, the energetic manner), it surely fails to earn its place in this gallery. Too much is gusty, uneven and tending to shrillness, the German glottal attack on vowels contributing to the disruptiveness. Flagstad's ''Abscheulicher'' places it immediately, for here is exactly the nobility of tone, the wholeness of voice and production that were wanting in the other. Her singing is unexpectedly strong in feeling too, with the ''Komm, o Hoffnung'' section warmed by a gentle, well-judged portamento. Lemnitz and Schumann (effectively juxtaposed) are both heard at their best, after which the German repertoire gives way to the French and Italian. All of these are splendid selections, and how especially good it is to have Seinemeyer's ''Un bel di'' with the thrill of that intense concentration in the opening phrases.
The transfers are comfortable; less sharp in definition than some, with surface-level varying from the medium-thick (Schone and Schumann) to the almost non-existent (Lehmann and Vallin's ''Obeissons''). Also variable is the volume-level, up a degree in the Lemnitz, several degrees too many in Dal Monte. Tony Watt's biographical notes and commentaries are both informative and judicious.'