Mahler Symphonies Favorite Recordings - Page 192

A bit unrelated, but why are some symphonies, broken into 1 track per movement, and others multiple ?
For example in the abbado DG 80s set, 2,3,7,8 and 9 have multiple tracks per Movement, where the others have one track per movement ?

Lionel

I know why they break long movements into separate tracks: to identify major sections of a movement. But only people who study the scores would really care. Years ago, Denon used to actually use the index numbers and print in the booklet how to access certain rehearsal letters in the score using the correct track/index number.
Most people couldn't care less. But -- it is really annoying when trying to download to an mp3 player. So I usually wind up with 2nd choice performances to have an entire movement on one track. I suppose there's a way to join mp3 tracks, but as an essentially computer illiterate person, I haven't a clue!

Thieleman: my first, and so far only, contact was in the Carmina Burana that was so widely praised. The mannerisms, the uncalled-for luftpausen and other interpretive licenses told me to stay away. If he's the new Karajan, lord help us all...

Haven't heard Thielemann, but can't help noticing all the Classics Today reviews are by Hurwitz. It's always amusing when he's working out a grudge, though not always useful for readers.

Re: multi-tracks per movement - this is probably the most annoying thing about my Bernstein/Sony box, having to enter "22" in order to listen to the 4th movement of a symphony. Do music students really constitute such an important market sector?




EDIT: Double post!

After reading much hype, I bought the Horenstein M4 on CfP yesterday. A couple of hours later it was on my discard pile. It really lacks ... magic, that's the best word for it. 2nd movement extremely slow, and the whole performance lacks energy. Strangely, an Amazon review encapsulating my reaction has just appeared on Amazon. Who'da thunk it?

For the multitrack, I decided to rerip the guilty tracks in foobar, select the multiple tracks that constitute the movment of the symphony, and do a 'convert as a single file'.
A bit painfull and time consuming and you need to be a bit 'computer aware', but ultimately it works nicely.

M02 : Abbado, Walter NYP
I started to listen to the Abbado set, starting with the second. And oh boy, is that powerfull and full of energy. Completly different from my Walter recording that I like a lot. I will need to get back to that one and compare it as well to my other m02s (kaplan 1 and 2, mehta, bernstein DG, Boulez).

M02 : LIsten to full symphony ?
While listening the the Abbado, I realized that I usually stop at mvt 4, and rarely listen to the last mvt. Is there any other in that situation ? Is there a Mahler symphony that you like a lot, but always skip one movement ?

Lionel

Heresy!! You're discarding my favorite movement in all of music. From the moment I hear that tremolo and rising string bass motif in the first bars of the piece, I'm captured and can't turn it off until the end of the symphony.

-Jay

Has anyone else out there heard the "new" Horenstein M6? Previously, only his Stockholm PO live concert from '66 was available on CD, but the BBC recently liberated a live '69 M6 by Horenstein with the Bournemouth Symphony. It's in mono, but it's not bad sonically. A little shrill on the high end in climaxes, and a little shallow in the bass. In other words, a typical radio broadcast recording of the period. But the good thing is that the performance is better played than the Stockholm account, and it has a little extra intensity. According to Joel Lazar's booklet note, Stockholm was the first time Horenstein ever conducted M6. Bournemouth was his third time, and it seems that he felt secure enough to turn up the heat a little, though it is still nothing like the way Bernstein tears through it. Especially in the finale, there is something almost patrician in the way that Horenstein refuses to let it "all hang out." He keeps an aloof feel, even as the emphasis and intensity of the movement builds up. Whereas Bernstein goes for the manic angle, Horenstein's scowl just keeps getting darker and more severe-- perhaps giving us the bipolar opposite to Lenny's approach. I connect more with Lenny in this work, but Horenstein is grimly impressive here. For anyone interested in exploring Horenstein's M6, I'd recommend this over the Stockholm performance.

Edit: I should also mention the "fillers": A brisk '57 Rossini "Semiramide Overture" with the BBC Symphony in mono, and a taut '71 performance of Nielsen's 5th with the New Philharmonia in stereo.

Mark

Mark,

I have it but haven't had a chance to listen to it carefully. I'll have to put it on again. I did check it to make sure that there were no parts of the recording that didn't play correctly, but then it was put aside as things in my house are still very chaotic.

The one thing I do remember is that the sound quality was really very good, and not something to worry about for anyone who is concerned about it.

Bunny,

I'll bet you'll find old Jascha a little icy for your taste! I'm listening to his Tchaikovsky 5 right now, though, and here he turns up the heat a lot more.

Mark

I just checked out Chailly's M8, only a couple days after seriously listening to Rattle's M8, and I find Chailly's version to be significantly more powerful and exciting, but not as energetic. Obviously, the slower tempo, and the conductor's greater attention to dynamic and tonal detail (Rattle takes more freedoms in his piece) attribute to this largely. I also would have preferred the vocalists to have a more 'up front' style, but I did like how everything seemed to meld together, until those beautifully loud and vibrant timpani and other percussion strikes came in.

I find Rattle's to be the more accessible recording, however. I particularly love Rattle's soprano soloist. His version seems like an excellent place for a Mahler newbie to start (that, or Bernstein's M2).

That's why so many critics call Rattle's Mahler, Mahler-lite.

Except for the Penguin Guide -- they give him a rosette for M2! I bought it and thought it would really be something special. It isn't. His gross distortions (mannerisms?) to the score are in very poor taste, in my opinion. Grandstanding, playing to the crowd. Whatever it is, it turned me off. That was the 2nd and last Rattle/Mahler I bought. THe other was a lackluster 7th.

The Scherzo of that Rattle M7 isn't lackluster in my opinion. It's an example of how Rattle's fussiness can work, when applied to the right target. It is full of extreme timbres and expressive touches that make other versions seem quite bland to me now. I am not a big Rattle fan, but I'm happy to give him his due. That Scherzo rocks.

M

Mahler 2 with Michael Tilson-thomas with San fransisco on SACD is the best recording made of the second, in my opinion. Listen to it, it is amazing

It's not that good! Although Lorraine Hunt Lieberson really shines in the finale, I think the new Fischer is as good as well as some others.