This recording of Die Frau ohne Schatten lays to waste the notion that this opera languished in obscurity until the Met mounted their celebrated production during their inaugural season at Lincoln Center. Ingrid Bjoner in the title role is near perfect casting. Her voice possessed a unique blend of purity and power. Gladys Kuchta is a powerhouse as the Dyer’s wife and although her voice is quite impressive during the declamatory sections, she never sacrifices the beauty of her tone on the altar of high drama. This carries her a long way in maintaining the sympathy of a character that can too easily come across as shrewish and aloof in the wrong hands. Grace Hoffman deliver a colorful Nurse.