Jennifer Vyvyan was one of the most revered sopranos of her generation. Her career was particularly associated with Britten operas, for which she premiered many roles. But the scope of her talent was particularly wide, and she also excelled in early music and sacred works. In this recording from her prime of Beethoven’s Mass in C she teams up with Richard Lewis, Monica Sinclair and Marian Nowakowski.

Beethoven reputedly wasn't Beecham's favorite composer, but you wouldn't know it from this performance; it's exceedingly well conceived, highly energetic, and has that unique Beecham sparkle to it. The fillers also are delightful. All recorded in Ascona, Switzerland in 1957.

Sir Thomas Beecham is strongly identified with the orchestral music of Schubert, largely from these final recordings made over a period of years at different locations. In fact, it is amazing that these performances sound so cohesive, since bits and pieces were recorded over such a long time span. But Beecham was that rare performer who could make fastidious work sound spontaneous–and there are many such moments among these three symphonies. Indeed, these recordings could be recommended just for the wonderful woodwind solos. On the other hand, I find the string playing a little harsh and overdriven.

Beecham had an exquisite ear for detail, and his Peer Gynt has more fantasy — more subtlety, too — than anyone else's: Ase s Death and Anitra 's Dance are simply magical. So is the Symphonic Dance, and if In Autumn and the variations occasionally seem a litde thin musically, Beecham makes amends with keenness of attack and eloquent phrasing. The orchestra is superb and the transfers (which give us the variations in stereo for the first time), excellent.