In his latest blog post, the incomparable Alan Rich sings the praises of some substantial Wagner recordings from the 78 era (and a few recent DVD releases). I have to echo his enthusiasm for both the hair-raising prewar Die Walküre Akt I with a dream cast conducted by Bruno Walter and Ward Marston’s stunning new transfers of Victor Records’ scenes from Siegfried recorded in the 1930s The former, issued on a single EMI Références CD, is no longer available but does turn up on Amazon and ebay from time to time; the latter, released on Naxos, is easily obtainable from numerous overseas mail order sources.