‘For me, Strauss is one of the greatest composers,’ Diana Damrau has said. ‘The way he handles the soprano voice is a joy. And to be able to sing his music with my voice feels like coming home.’

The centrepiece of this album of Strauss songs is the sublime Vier letzte Lieder, in which Damrau - born and trained in Bavaria - joins forces with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and its long-standing Chief Conductor Mariss Jansons, in what was to become his final recording. Her partner in a tempting and diverse selection of songs with piano is Helmut Deutsch.

‘Not only is Strauss’s music gorgeous, says Damrau, 'there’s the way he combines words and notes - and the psychology.