These scintillating performances under Richard Bonynge for the most part remain unmatched in the catalog. There have been a number of broadly similar collections (including a memorable survey from Yan Pascal Tortelier and the BBC Philharmonic on Chandos), and although there are some significant oversights here (where for example are Auber's overtures to Le Cheval de bronze and Fra Diavolo?), these discs evidence Bonynge's skill at breathing new life into forgotten gems. Good old tub-thumpers like Ambroise Thomas' Mignon, Boieldieu's Le Calife de Bagdad, and Hérold's Zampa will still be reasonably familiar to most, but these performances are so convincing that you'll wonder why they're omitted from today's supposedly more "intellectual" concert bills.

And then there are the real rarities, wonderful chunks of gorgeous orchestral kitsch like Wallace's Maritana, Planquette's Les Cloches de Corneville, and Les Dragons de Villars by Maillart. They're all vivid examples of a populist genre that simply had its day; but allowing that, when did you last hear even a Suppé overture "live"? The first eight tracks on CD 1 feature the New Philharmonia Orchestra, with the balance of works included on this Double Decca set entrusted to the London Symphony. It would be hard to imagine this thoroughly enjoyable music being either better played or recorded. Superb!