American soprano Eleanor Steber (1914-1990) was a legend in her lifetime for her Mozart performances. The release of these two radio broadcasts adds immeasurably to our understanding of her work. In the Don Giovanni, from the Met in 1944, she sings a fiery, anguished Elvira in a hair-raising performance conducted by George Szell, with Ezio Pinza, lethally sexy in the title role. The Idomeneo, taped at the 1955 Athens festival, presents us with her startling Ilia. She's essential listening for lovers of great singing, though neither set can be recommended as a first choice recording.

The Don Giovanni is flawed by Florence Kirk's prim, unwieldy Anna. The Idomeneo dates from a period when the opera was an unknown quantity and despite some fine individual performances, the cuts are too numerous for comfort.