Mahler Mania, Rebooted

[North Star]

Wow, you must go through a box of tissues in a few days.

He's such a wimp, our Daniel. 

[Mirror Image]

He's such a wimp, our Daniel. 

[not edward]

Yes, Chailly's 3rd is absolutely remarkable, such a brilliant, beautiful performance. His complete cycles was the latest one I listened to and I extremely enjoyed it; from No.1 to No.5, plus No.7 and No.9, the symphonies are one better than the other, absolutely thrilling and powerful. The 6th is very fine and well played, with a passionate, vibrant Alma Theme, but it lacks energy in the march because of the tempo chosen. I think the best recording of Chailly's set-box is definitely the 5th symphony.

Would definitely agree with the raves for 3, 5 and 7; it's definitely nuanced Mahler rather than Bernsteinian Mahler, so those who prefer a more in-your-face approach may not like it so much. Chailly's 3rd and 5ths were the recordings that got me back into these symphonies after overplaying the works when I was younger (this might be a good point to randomly recap M Forever's "underrated Mahler 3"--Armin Jordan on Virgin, which has many of the same merits as Chailly).

I'd be tempted to praise the 10th as highly as anything in this set, though: I imprinted on the 1980 Rattle but after a few listenings the more understated Chailly became my favourite--in particular, the string and woodwind playing in the more optimistic music in the finale is extraordinarily gentle and tender, and so utterly right to my ears.

[Mirror Image]

Mahler with moustache makes me think of Inspector Clouseau   "Do you have for me the massage?"

I always thought Mahler looked like Frank Bridge in my avatar.

[Mirror Image]

The slow movement of the 4th (3rd movement -- Ruhevoll, poco adagio) towards the end sounds like the slow movement (Adagietto) of the 5th. It's beautiful, of course, but it's played at almost the volume of a whisper. It's like the Adagietto of the 5th symphony's ghost!

[eyeresist]

I remember Naxos put out a "Mahler Adagio" album. I can just imagine some unsuspecting person putting that on for some background relaxation music .... and then slowly getting freaked out 



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[Mirror Image]

I remember Naxos put out a "Mahler Adagio" album. I can just imagine some unsuspecting person putting that on for some background relaxation music .... and then slowly getting freaked out 



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[Mirror Image]

Here's what my listening log is going to look like for tomorrow:
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-Symphony No. 3, Riccardo Chailly, Royal Concertgebouw, Decca (listening to this one now actually)
-Symphony No. 1, Rafael Kubelik, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orch., DG
-Symphony No. 6, Pierre Boulez, Vienna Philharmonic, DG
-Symphony No. 2, Simon Rattle, City of Birmingham Symphony Orch., EMI
-Symphony No. 8, Bernarnd Haitink, Royal Concertgebouw, Philips

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I've already marked these down in my journal except for the one highlighted which I don't know if I'll have time to listen to or not. Right now, Chailly's 3rd is as good as I remembered it being. Absolutely wonderful.

[Mirror Image]

By the way, Daniel, I have to say that I wasn't overly impressed with Solti's 7th. I did, however, like the way he handled the last movement. I thought both Nachtmusik movements weren't very convincing. Solti didn't seem very sensitive to the more melodic aspects of these movements, but Solti has never been a subtle conductor anyway, so the fault definitely lies with him here IMHO. They were just missing a certain magic that I think Rattle and Abbado deliver in spades.

[Mirror Image]

I will conclude my Mahler listening for the day later on this evening with this recording:

[madaboutmahler]

Wow, you must go through a box of tissues in a few days. After Rattle's 9th finishes, Solti's 7th is up next. Can't wait to hear it.

He's such a wimp, our Daniel. 

haha! 

By the way, Daniel, I have to say that I wasn't overly impressed with Solti's 7th. I did, however, like the way he handled the last movement. I thought both Nachtmusik movements weren't very convincing. Solti didn't seem very sensitive to the more melodic aspects of these movements, but Solti has never been a subtle conductor anyway, so the fault definitely lies with him here IMHO. They were just missing a certain magic that I think Rattle and Abbado deliver in spades.

Sorry to hear that, John! I really do enjoy this performance, especially of the first movement. I can however agree that Solti could be more subtle in the Nachtmusik movements. I think I am going to listen to MTT's LSO M7 soon, which I am really looking forward to. The Rattle certainly is great, if lacking in a slight bit of excitment compared to other recordings. I, and I believe Sarge too, feel that Abbado is a bit 'safe'. Or maybe I've just been listening to too much Solti! We all have such different views when it comes to the performance of Mahler!

I will conclude my Mahler listening for the day later on this evening with this recording:

A great performance, John!

[Mirror Image]

haha! 

Sorry to hear that, John! I really do enjoy this performance, especially of the first movement. I can however agree that Solti could be more subtle in the Nachtmusik movements. I think I am going to listen to MTT's LSO M7 soon, which I am really looking forward to. The Rattle certainly is great, if lacking in a slight bit of excitment compared to other recordings. I, and I believe Sarge too, feel that Abbado is a bit 'safe'. Or maybe I've just been listening to too much Solti! We all have such different views when it comes to the performance of Mahler!

A great performance, John!

I disagree with your opinion of Abbado, but you already know I LOVE Abbado's Mahler, so nothing you or anyone else can say can change that! LONG LIVE ABBADO'S MAHLER!!! I also disagree that the Rattle 7th 'lacks excitement.' On the contrary, I think it's one of the more spirited 7th performances I've heard, but, again, Rattle doesn't need to prove himself as an heir to Solti or Bernstein or Walter or Boulez, Rattle is Rattle and what I listen to in his performance is what I admire the most: he brings a detail-oriented approach that works well with the 7th because of the inherent structural complexity this symphony contains. Simply put, Rattle made this symphony click for me and for that I'm grateful.

All of this said, there are a myriad of ways to approach Mahler's music. Each symphony presents unique challenges for every conductor and orchestra.

[Mirror Image]

Symphony No. 7



Probably Mahler's most enigmatic symphony, this work, for me, conjures up so many strong images, but one of the most vivid is perhaps a lone horseman galloping in a state of panic through a forest with an unknown force slowly closing in on him, especially in the more intense, faster paced sections of the symphony.

What do you think Mahler is trying to express in this symphony?

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about each individual movement:

1st movement-

The movement is in sonata form. It begins with a slow introduction, launched by a dark melody played by a baritone horn (German Tenorhorn). The accompanimental rhythm was said to have come to Mahler whilst rowing on the lake at Maiernigg after a period of compositional drought. Bitter and anguished cries emerge from various members of the woodwind and brass families and lead to a passionate climax. (The principal trumpet in the orchestra for the work's première even confronted Mahler, saying "I'd just like to know what's beautiful about blowing away at a trumpet stopped up to high C-sharp" Mahler had no answer, but later pointed out to Alma that the man did not understand the agony of his own existence).[7] The pace quickens and the music launches into a strangely confused dance—part Viennese waltz, part grotesque stomp, and part militaristic march—which yields to a lyrical theme introduced by a pair of horns. The swaying and swooping of the violins in this section was inspired by the wildlife and scenery of the Carinthian Mountains in summer. An abrupt return to the double basses heralds an inexorable build-up of passion which only finds its final resolution in the brisk and robust—but curiously bitter-sweet—march with which the movement ends.

2nd movement-

The second movement opens with horns calling to each other across the mountain valleys in the gathering dusk. The first of the two "Nachtmusik" ("Night Music") movements, this is said to represent a "walk by night", and could represent a musical recreation of Rembrandt's Night Watch, which impressed Mahler; he had spent considerable time at the Rijksmuseum on his first trip to the Netherlands in 1904. Mahler, however, described the movement in more vague terms.[8] Scampering woodwind pass off into the distance as the horns introduce a rich, somewhat bucolic theme, surrounded by dancing strings. The rural mood is heightened by a gentle, rustic dance - typical of Mahler at his most carefree and childlike - as well as by high fluttering woodwind bird-calls and the gentle clanking of distant cow-bells. At the end, the movement gradually descends into silence. Night has finally fallen.

3rd movement-

There is an undercurrent of night about the spooky third movement; while Scherzo means 'joke', this movement is remarkably gloomy and even grim. Nonetheless, as the Spanish musicologist José L. Pérez de Arteaga points out (Pérez de Arteaga, José L.: Mahler, Barcelona, Salvat, 1987, p. 148), this movement is really "a most morbid and sarcastic mockery of the Viennese waltz". Eerie timpani and low wind instruments set off on a threatening waltz, complete with unearthly woodwind shrieks and ghostly shimmerings from the basses. At one point, the strings are instructed to play pizzicato with the volume fffff, with the footnote, pluck so hard that the strings hit the wood. Curious instrumental effects give this movement a strongly nightmarish quality.

4th movement-

The fourth movement (the second "Nachtmusik"), with its "amorous" marking and reduced instrumentation—trombones, tuba and trumpets are silent and woodwinds reduced by half—has been described as "a long stretch of chamber music set amidst this huge orchestral work". A solo violin introduces the movement, while a horn solo above the gentle tones of a guitar and mandolin create a magical serenade character.
5th movement-

Boisterous timpani, joined in the fray by blazing brass, set the scene for the riotous fifth movement. Here is quasi-film music, pomp and pageantry and great dramatic gestures all rolled into a piece that demands intense orchestral display. Formally, the movement is a rondo that acts as the theme for a set of eight variations, capped off by a dramatic coda. There are parodies of Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow,[9] as well as of Mahler's own Fifth Symphony[citation needed] and the famous Lutheran Hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott",[citation needed] not to mention other ironic and sarcastic references.[citation needed] Little wonder that, of all the Symphony's movements, this has come in for the greatest amount of criticism and puzzlement (it has been seen by many as something of a let-down and somewhat superficial,[citation needed] dodging questions set by the previous movements): its virtually unrelenting mood of celebration seems quite at odds with the dark character of the earlier movements - "a vigorous life-asserting pageant of Mahlerian blatancy", is how Michael Kennedy describes it. For his part Mahler described it simply as a depiction of "broad daylight"[citation needed] and the outrageously exuberant ending, with passing references to the very opening theme, seems to encapsulate the blazing brilliance of the noonday sun.

[not edward]

What do you think Mahler is trying to express in this symphony?

Buggered if I know, but it's possible to make it express almost anything. So I guess it's about life.

I'm rather partial to Scherchen's view of the last movement, which sometimes seems close to "... and you wake up, and discover the light at the end of the tunnel is a train." Of course, none of his 7ths were ideally executed (the Toronto version is near to complete disintegration at times); I guess one could regard Staatskapelle Berlin/Barenboim as something of a modern analogue--I certainly find the rejoicing in the last movement leaves a nasty taste in one's mouth in this recording.

But there's so many things you can do with this symphony--and make them work--which is what makes it so infinitely rewarding to me.

[Mirror Image]

Buggered if I know, but it's possible to make it express almost anything. So I guess it's about life.

I'm rather partial to Scherchen's view of the last movement, which sometimes seems close to "... and you wake up, and discover the light at the end of the tunnel is a train." Of course, none of his 7ths were ideally executed (the Toronto version is near to complete disintegration at times); I guess one could regard Staatskapelle Berlin/Barenboim as something of a modern analogue--I certainly find the rejoicing in the last movement leaves a nasty taste in one's mouth in this recording.

But there's so many things you can do with this symphony--and make them work--which is what makes it so infinitely rewarding to me.

But if we were to look at the structure alone, it's abnormal even for a Mahler symphony. Then there's the music, this symphony is a strange brew of sounds of the forests with several episodes of demonic firebreathing. Saying the symphony is about 'life' is pretty obvious since everything Mahler wrote came from his soul and reflected his innermost thoughts, but what were those thoughts in this symphony? Why were two movements titled Nachtmusik, what relation do these two movements have with the rest of the work? A mind wonders...

[Mirror Image]

Mahler listening log for today:
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-Symphony No. 1, Rafael Kubelik, Bavarian Radio Symphony, DG
-Symphony No. 3, Riccardo Chailly, Royal Concertgebouw, Decca
-Symphony No. 6, Pierre Boulez, Vienna Philharmonic, DG
-Symphony No. 7, Bernard Haitink, Royal Concertgebouw, Philips
-Symphony No. 5, Claudio Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic, DG

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The one bolded is the one I haven't listened to yet. Particular highlights for me today were Kubelik's performance of the 1st symphony and Chailly's performance of the 3rd. Both amazing performances. Haitink's 7th is a bit of a misfire as I don't think he fully understands this symphony.

[kishnevi]

Currently listening for the first time to a Hanssler Classic "historical recording" released last year
Mahler Symphony No. 6
SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden Baden und Freiburg
Kirill Kondrashin, conductor.

Studio recording 13-15 January 1981
As I write this the last movement is (I think this is a fair adjective to use) hurtling to its end. (Quick edit;  slows down to merely rapid strides in the last few minutes.)
i:   Allergo energico                   17:02
ii:  Scherzo: Wuchtig                 12:09
iii: Andante moderato               13:26
iv: Finale: Andante moderato    25:25

I assume there are cuts in the first movement, but my ears didn't detect any missing landmarks.    Total time is 68:24.  At least some of the brief times in the outer movements can be attributed to using tempos on the fast side.   Certainly an effective rendition.

It is a trifle depressing to see a recording described as "historical" when it was recorded a year after one graduated college.

[not edward]

I assume there are cuts in the first movement, but my ears didn't detect any missing landmarks.

No cuts, just a very rapid tempo and skipping the first-movement repeat (if I remember rightly, the Melodiya recording is actually faster).

Kondrashin in the 6th I find interesting but ultimately too one-dimensional to be amongst my favourites--it really is a merciless performance. I really like his studio 7th, though. (I should get hold of the Amsterdam live performance, I guess, but my Mahler 7s are ballooning.)

[kishnevi]

No cuts, just a very rapid tempo and skipping the first-movement repeat (if I remember rightly, the Melodiya recording is actually faster).

Kondrashin in the 6th I find interesting but ultimately too one-dimensional to be amongst my favourites--it really is a merciless performance. I really like his studio 7th, though. (I should get hold of the Amsterdam live performance, I guess, but my Mahler 7s are ballooning.)

Thanks for the confirmation.  (To be clear, skipping the repeat is what I call a cut--although I thought I heard at least the beginning of that repeat!)

And yes, merciless is a good way to describe this performance. 

[eyeresist]

But if we were to look at the structure alone, it's abnormal even for a Mahler symphony.

It's a close match for the 10th, actually....