In fact, Peter Dawson was one of the greatest bass-baritones of the 20th century. He had neon-sign diction and a flawlessly polished technique (his coloratura was impeccable), and though his voice was a bit too small for him to appear comfortably in large-house opera, he did record a great many well-known arias and a few classical art songs, always in English and always to brilliant effect. “Peter Dawson: Australia’s Ambassador of Song,” a two-CD set available from amazon.com, contains his 78-era recordings of Mozart’s “Non più andrai,” Rossini’s “Largo al factotum,” Handel’s “O ruddier than the cherry,” the Toreador Song from “Carmen,” Schubert’s “Erlkönig,” and Vaughan Williams’ “The Vagabond,” along with two dozen popular songs and ballads. I recommend it highly.