Quote:
Originally Posted by userlander  Brahms 3rd
Beethoven 9th
Beethoven String Quartets 14-17
Stravinsky - Rite of Spring
Bach - Well-Tempered Clavier
Debussy - Prelude Aft. Faun
Coltrane - A Love Supreme
Mahler is undoubtedly among the greats, but I haven't listened to much of his stuff yet so I can't really say. What's considered a good entry Mahler work? 5th symphony?
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As much as I love Coltrane, it's quite funny seeing Love Supreme listed there, and yet I cannot dispute, I think its an amazing work.
I'm not really sure what the best entry point for Mahler is. I think something that's very important is going with a very strong interpretation on your first shot.
If you already adore the Rite of Spring then dissonance may not scare you away from Mahler's later's works and I would suggest trying the 9th Symphony first, though it is a rather final-sounding work. If you go with this try Karajan's 1984 version, it has a photo of him on the cover framed in a pencil line gold.
The 5th symphony comes sort of at a central point in his composing career. It covers a lot of ground dynamically, stylistically, emotionally and it probably is the greatest starting point, it was my starting point, but that said, I certainly don't think it is his greatest work.....he probably has 4 or 5 symphonies that I think are superior. If you go with this try Rudolph Barshai's performance, it's the only one in my opinion....I don't listen to any other version and I own 28 of them.
A lot of people would recommend you try the 2nd Symphony first. Today it is his most popular work and maybe the most beloved symphony outside of Beethoven world-wide. It showcases a chorus and two vocal soloists in the last two movements. Also, from an audiophile standpoint, this is the single piece of music which best tests not only your equipment, but also a concert hall, a sound engineer's abilities and even the microphones they use when recording it. There are a lot of top notch performances, and some sound better sonically than this recording, but Zubin Mehta's 1975 recording with the Vienna Phil is without a doubt the best on record.
If you want to be daring, try 2, 5, 9 and I would also suggest symphony 4 for an entirely different sounding Mahler (try Ivan Fischer's recording).............if you hear these 4 works and don't love it, then Mahler is probably not for you. If you must only try one, make it the 5th or 9th.
