Who nails Mahler's 5th?

[Leo K.]

IS THAT SO?

I do agree, it's very well executed. But for that species of Mahler 5th, dark and grand, I think Chailly's the one who nails it.

I haven't heard the Chailly yet! 

I don't see Bertini's M5 as dark, and I think that was what was impressive when I first heard it...I heard the tone as more romantic and lighter (and somehow it works!), and the flow and nuance of the Colongue (sp?) is stunning.

[Renfield]

I don't see Bertini's M5 as dark, and I think that was what was impressive when I first heard it...I heard the tone as more romantic and lighter (and somehow it works!), and the flow and nuance of the Colongue (sp?) is stunning.

I suppose it's more of a mid-point between Barbirolli and Chailly. I still wouldn't call it 'light' in texture, though.

[greg]

So... decided to turn on that very recording and listen again. So far, sounds heavy to me...

edit: first movement seems heavy in terms of having the quieter parts not being extremely quiet, as in other recordings. The second movement does seem light in comparison.

[Leo K.]

I suppose it's more of a mid-point between Barbirolli and Chailly. I still wouldn't call it 'light' in texture, though.

Yeah, "light" is the wrong word...trying to think of something more apt! 

[Leo K.]

So... decided to turn on that very recording and listen again. So far, sounds heavy to me...

edit: first movement seems heavy in terms of having the quieter parts not being extremely quiet, as in other recordings. The second movement does seem light in comparison.

Perhaps I'm thinking of the 2nd and 4th movements...I'll just have to revist the Bertini M5 again very soon!


And get the Chailly soon too.

[Leo K.]

Another quality I like about the Bertini M5 is the pacing, and the great nuanced playing of the orchestra...it is very exciting and details of the score really shine through.



My other favorite M5's are the Bernstein VPO tied with Haitink's 1960's M5 with the Concertgebouw.

[Leo K.]

back to the Haitink I mentioned, this is the particular version of his early M5 I want to point out...an incredible SACD:



Never have I heard the percussion sound so terrifying, and I am even more impressed at Mahler's intuition for color and contrast in the first two movements. The Scherzo is utter beauty, the plucked bass notes ring like an echo in the alps, the solo horn is so evocative in tone and personality. The Adagietto is unlike any sound recording I have heard, the sound is so opened it's like hearing the personality of every string player at once, the bow on the strings clearly provide breathtaking texture and atmopshere.  Likewise the Finale is atmospheric, with the personality of the woodwinds full of dance and joy...the basses so rich and embracing.

[Mr. Darcy]

Though I haven't heard many Mahler 5s, I'm rather fond of Gielen here.

The recorded sound on those Chailly Mahler recordings is quite nice (again, though I haven't heard his 5).

Barshai / Junge Deutsche Phil (Brilliant)

Barshai? Wow, that one really slipped-in beneath my radar (not that I can't imagine an intriguing interpretation)... How's the youth orchestra?

[Marc]

Barshai? Wow, that one really slipped-in beneath my radar (not that I can't imagine an intriguing interpretation)... How's the youth orchestra?

This one grabbed me from the first bars and it didn't let me go.
The issue I have is coupled with another great recording, of the 10th.
I would summarize them both as being very direct and intense.

It's also been thrown on the market on 1 disc:
http://www.brilliantclassics.com/release.aspx?id=FM00000317

The young musicians are really GREAT!
This fifth was released at another label (Laurel) first. It's a true live performance which is, IMHO, an unforgettable intense & powerful experience! Well, yes, the strings don't match the sound of f.i. the Wiener Phil or Concertgebouw, but also the Adagietto is played in a convincing continuing flow. And Barshai is one of the conductors who play the Scherzo (a favourite movement of mine) in a tempo that I like: NICHT ZU SCHNELL! (Other examples I know are Bernstein and Haitink - the latter with the Berliner Phil.)
In the end, I'd describe the recording sound as 'natural'.

I would recommend it strongly, for what it's worth.

[DarkAngel]

Barshai? Wow, that one really slipped-in beneath my radar (not that I can't imagine an intriguing interpretation)... How's the youth orchestra?

No allowance need be made for the youth orchestra, this is one of the very best Mahler 5th by any measure, low price makes it all the more attractive........not sure why Barshai doesn't have more Mahler recordings. I have the 2CD version with Mahler 10

[Leo K.]

How could I forget that Barshai   

Yes, agree with you all on this one. 

[Wanderer]

Chailly/Concertgebouw and Barshai/JDP for me.

[PerfectWagnerite]

Like many I like the Bertini, a velvety, opulent recording that is never short on drama. But as a favorite I would have to go with Karajan with the BP. I am not a big Karajan fan but somehow in this reading he gets all the irony, the bitterness, the nostalgia, the resignation, and the bittersweet exuberance at the end like no other. It is a reading that makes you want to just weep it is so moving and powerful. I can't even think of another reading that is in the same category.

[Leo K.]

Like many I like the Bertini, a velvety, opulent recording that is never short on drama. But as a favorite I would have to go with Karajan with the BP. I am not a big Karajan fan but somehow in this reading he gets all the irony, the bitterness, the nostalgia, the resignation, and the bittersweet exuberance at the end like no other. It is a reading that makes you want to just weep it is so moving and powerful. I can't even think of another reading that is in the same category.

+1 here...and I may add the adagietto sounds out of this world.

[PerfectWagnerite]

+1 here...and I may add the adagietto sounds out of this world.

It's also a little strange that Karajan can record such exemplary M5, M6, and two M9s yet be totally inept in the M4 (a complete miscast in the finale and an overall reading as ponderous as a drunken elephant) and Das Lied (probably one of the least satisfying Das Lied that I have ever heard)...

Back to the 5th, I also like Neumann's recording with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig. The sound of the orchestra is much less rich and creamy than most German and Austrian orchestras. But it's iron-clad string sound, anchored by those monstrous contrabasses, along with it's hazy horns and grainy trumpets, make a nice contrast to most mainstream readings.

[Renfield]

On the subject of Karajan's Mahler 5th, I do consider it an extremely competent recording, but I really don't think it's  in the same interpretative league as a few of the others mentioned here (and I'm not just talking about cases of interpretational excess like Bernstein's). It is, to my mind, an extremely competent play-through; albeit one whose power and dignity I cherish.

[DavidRoss]

Mahler's symphonies are too big and expansive to be nailed in just one way.  The recordings of the 5th I usually select are:  Bernstein/WP, Barshai/NJDP, MTT/SFS, and Sinopoli/Philharmonia.  Lenny gets the desert island nod.

[Renfield]

Mahler's symphonies are too big and expansive to be nailed in just one way.  The recordings of the 5th I usually select are:  Bernstein/WP, Barshai/NJDP, MTT/SFS, and Sinopoli/Philharmonia.

Now there's an omission from my collection.

(Welcome back. )

[imperfection]

+1 here...and I may add the adagietto sounds out of this world.

Yes. I have never heard such a refined Adagietto from all the ~20 versions of M5 that I've heard. Karajan was the master of orchestral sound, period.

[Scarpia]

On the subject of Karajan's Mahler 5th, I do consider it an extremely competent recording, but I really don't think it's  in the same interpretative league as a few of the others mentioned here (and I'm not just talking about cases of interpretational excess like Bernstein's). It is, to my mind, an extremely competent play-through; albeit one whose power and dignity I cherish.

Whether you consider the result compelling is a matter of taste, "play-through" is not an apt description.  Accounts of the rehearsals and recording sessions portray the Mahler 5 as one of the most lavishly and seriously prepared recordings the Karajan made.  Personally, I think it is very good, if not the last word.  I especially enjoy the way he luxuriates in the low-brass sonorities in the first movement.