Acclaimed as one of her generation’s finest interpreters of Richard Strauss (the composer himself identified her as his ideal Arabella), the Swiss soprano Lisa della Casa was blessed with a seemingly effortless, shimmeringly beautiful voice as well as an innate sense of musical style. In the words of the distinguished critic John Steane: ‘Della Casa remains one of the best of all sopranos in Richard Strauss. Her voice has that touch of spring and silver that Strauss loved and wrote for; her tone will float and soar’. These vivid recordings are essential for every collection.