Australian dramatic soprano Sylvia Fisher was born in Melbourne in 1910 and established herself first as a concert and radio singer in Australia before moving to London in 1947. Her Covent Garden debut came the following year as Leonore in Beethoven’s Fidelio, after which she became an important member of the company, particularly in the German repertoire. Her roles included Elsa in Lohengrin, Sieglinde in Die Walküre, Senta in Der fliegende Holländer, and Isolde in Tristan und Isolde, while the Marschallin in Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier became one of her most celebrated portrayals. Later in her career she developed a particularly fruitful association with the operas of Benjamin Britten, creating the role of Miss Wingrave in Owen Wingrave.

Fisher was beloved for her gleaming, silvery soprano, ideally suited to the demands of Richard Wagner, as well as for a clarity of diction that made her an ideal proponent of Britten’s operas, particularly in the title role of Gloriana. Her recorded legacy is comparatively limited, making surviving broadcasts and live performances especially valuable documents of an important dramatic soprano.

This compilation offers an unusually broad portrait of her artistry. It includes two performances of Wagner’s Wesendonck-Lieder, one with orchestra and the other with piano, alongside a group of Richard Strauss Lieder. Completing the collection are two rare operatic excerpts from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde and Beethoven’s Fidelio, two works central to Fisher’s career.