Cornelius Ryan's "The Last Battle" goes into some details about the Berlin Philharmonic, and Albert Speer's involvement and efforts to evacuate them prior to the Soviet occupation of the city.

All 3 of his books are well worth the read, as they were written in the 50's-70's and include plenty of interviews with actual participants of WWII.

Can anyone suggest some recordings that illustrate the points being made in this review?

This is the typical example whenever this comes up. This is the "neutral" Furtwängler conducting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2itdv1aEpG4

Nice read, thanks for sharing. Also it's good to know that not all "political" submissions are being flagged.

Is this, "Hitler governed by executive decree, a method that has suddenly come into vogue again." referring to the Executive Orders issued by President Trump and Obama as of late? Well if so, it certainly is not even close to the executive orders issued by Hitler. U.S. presidential executive orders are still subject to judiciary review and can be struck down; and then there is the power of congress to pass laws that can override them (although they could be vetoed by the President).

Such comparisons are in fashion at the moment. One may as well get annoyed over unnecessary flannel or beard wax.