About this Artist

• Biography

Editorial Reviews

Before she re-recorded them in 1965, the recording to have of Strauss' "Vier letzte Lieder" was Elisabeth Schwarzkopf's with Otto Ackermann conducting the Philharmonic Orchestra from 1953. And if the 1965 eventually displaced the 1953 recording in the estimation of later listeners, it was only because the stereo replaced the mono as the new always replaces the old. Among older listeners, the recording to have remained the 1953 because the beauty of Schwarzkopf's voice was at its peak at that point in her career, her tone was at its freshest, and her interpretation was rich and deep and warm and soulful and not yet overripe.

But even after the transition to digital recordings, the 1965 Schwarzkopf remained the one to have because it was the only one you could get. Finally reissued here, the 1953 recording again allows the listener a choice. For older listeners, there will be no choice: Schwarzkopf's radiant voice sounds even better in this digital transfer. And for younger listeners, the freshness of Schwarzkopf's tone may have an appeal that her lush 1965 recording lacks. The excerpts from Strauss' "Capriccio" and "Arabella" from 1955 with Lovro von Matacic conducting the Philharmonic Orchestra remain among the most glorious things in Schwarzkopf's catalog. For lovers of the singer or of great singing, this will be a recording to treasure. EMI's remastered sound is as fine as the Walter Legge original. James Leonard, All Music Guide

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