Don asks for recommendations:

Well, I'll suggest three.  Sinopoli/VPO doing Elecktra.  As far as
modern recordings go, I found the Solti w/Nilsson exciting, but, Strauss'
relentless torrent of orchestral sound aside, the performers and the
recording is fatiguing in its own right.  EMI has a recording with
Sawallisch/Marton.  I have never been a fan of Eva Marton, and whatever
good work Sawallisch does with the magical and astonishing score is
hindered by a recessed recording of the orchestra.

This brings us to the Sinopoli.  Though many deride this conductor for
performances considered "surgical," "distorted," and "deconstructionist;"
sometimes, IMHO, he really hits a home run.  Elgar's 1st, Scriabin's
"Poem," Mahler's 7th, and Strauss' "Solome" come to mind as some of the
most riveting and enlightening performances one can hear.  To this list
I would add "Elektra."

Some highlights include Alessandra Marc's powerful, yet lyrical Elektra,
(as in the Recognition Scene); Sinopoli's handling of the orchestral
outburst in the Recognition Scene is incredible--one can hear all three
psychological themes merged together, without any sense of "invasive
surgery." Throughout the last act, the VPO plays as if possessed, and the
horn arabesques in Elektra's final waltz are hair-raising.  I must also
point out how well Strauss' gossamer orchestration comes off on Elektra's
words, "...when the thin rays of the moon bathed my body's white nakedness
as in a pool...." Well, enough already.  The performance and recording
would be one of my 10 desert-island discs.

Two other recommendations would be "Capriccio," with the beautiful
moonlight music and final scene.  Wasn't thrilled with te Kanawa's latest
recording, (horn crack alert in the "moonlight music!), and found the
Bohm/Janowitz to be perfectly adequate.  Capriccio's story revolves around
and argument as too which is superior: words or music.  In the finale, the
Countess pleads to the gods for an answer, and Stauss delivers with the
words, "Dinner is ready," and the curtain falls.

Another lesser known autumnal beauty is "Daphne", with Haitink/Popp on EMI.
The "Four Last Songs" expanded to an hour and a half.  Daphne's final
transformation into a tree is very moving, and similar beauties abound
throughout.

Kind of mystified with "Die Frau ohne Schatten," though it contains some
great music.  I prefer the orchestral synthesis.  You know "Der
Rosenkavalier," I hope!

John Smyth