Customer Reviews

Mahler: Symphony No. 5 - Benjamin Zander / Philharmonia Orchestra

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This Zander/Philharmonia Mahler 5th follows, by approximately 18 months, Zander's highly-acclaimed Mahler 9th (a performance so enthralling that I found myself writing a second Amazon.com review many months after I initially reviewed it). The good news, aside from the fact that this Mahler 5th, like Zander's Mahler 9th, is a great performance, is that it appears as if Telarc has committed to a full Mahler symphony series by Zander and the Philharmonia Orchestra, with his performance of the Mahler 4th already announced in the booklet for this Mahler 5th album as being available this August.

My total immersion in Zander's Mahler 9th was done in full awareness of the fact that he is a maestro not without controversy. Yes, I've seen the CBS "60 Minutes" segment on him. Twice. And yes, in that portrait, there is a zany, even manic, side to him. But there is a side of "missionary zeal" as well, perhaps of the magnitude of Bernstein, which not only came through in that "60 Minutes" piece but is also everywhere evident in his Mahler performances. I have had the pleasure of seeing and hearing him perform Mahler live, complete with his customary pre-concert lecture. And, to me, he is the Genuine Article: A Mahlerian who has both the knowledge and the directorial skills to get inside a Mahler symphony and present it with great expression.

This Mahler 5th fully lives up to the reputation set by his Mahler 9th. In fact, in at least a few respects, it is even better, if not greater, but that only because the 9th is a greater work. Starting at the top, one respect in which this performance is greater is the recorded sound. Unlike the 9th, which was recorded at a live performance at the Barbican Center in London, this is a studio recording (but done in conjunction with a series of live performances) recorded in a vastly superior acoustic venue. The shortcomings to that earlier 9th were related not to the fact that the performance was live but to the fact that the Barbican is simply not a particularly "flattering" venue for recording purposes. That particular "deficiency," minor as it was in the face of a shattering performance, is now history; the sound on this album is simply stunning: The usual Telarc stunning, in fact.

Another advantage to this Mahler 5th album over the 9th is the approach Zander has taken this time around with his discussion disc. (At 78 minutes, this discussion disc runs 10 minutes longer than the actual symphony does!) Where the 9th was challenging to a new listener from the perspectives of Mahler's themes, harmonies and polytonal style, the 5th is challenging from a structural perspective. So it is the structure, and the interrelationships of the five movements, which Zander elucidates in his discussion. And, by going outside this symphony, using examples from other works, both by Mahler and by other composers, Zander shines a light on precisely those areas which confound the first-time listener to this work. Best of all, he lovingly labors over the descriptions of a broad range of earlier approaches to the famous fourth movement, the Adagietto, showing how, over the work's lifetime, this movement has been played at tempi which result in timings varying from as little as 7 minutes to as much as 15 minutes, with each extreme, and everything in between, having its performing and listening advocates. With this discussion disc, Zander comes much closer to the approach that Bernstein did in his own famous Omnibus discussions, much of which ended up in his book "The Joy of Music." And that is good. As with Bernstein, no matter how much one knows about a piece of music, Zander can show you those seemingly little things which make you feel as if YOU are now the expert for having taken this journey with him.

The performance is first-rate. While I remain partial to Bernstein's later performance on DG, Zander's comes out no worse than second-best in a very crowded field. Like Bernstein (and unlike so many others who have made complete, or partial, traversals of the Mahler canon), Zander is a natural Mahlerian. Like Bernstein, he observes Mahler's detailed markings and achieves the inner rubatos, the ebbs-and-flows, the suppleness, that elevate the performance above the pedestrian and achieves a result which one could well imagine Mahler himself achieving. Unlike Bernstein, Zander, here in this 5th and earlier in the 9th, gives the sense of being able to suspend time without stretching the timings almost to the breaking point (as only Bernstein was able to do): The EFFECT is as if Bernstein had been on the podium, but the MEANS strike me as more Mahler than Bernstein. Quite remarkable, really. (In fact, Zander makes note of the fact that his timings mirror almost exactly those of Mahler in a performance during which one of Mahler's friends was using his watch to time the Mahler performance. He also makes note of the fact that these timings of Mahler were not known to him until after he had completed the performance recording and was assembling his discussion materials and notes.)

I can now look forward to the Zander Mahler 4th just a few months from now, with its own discussion disc. More to the point, now that there is every appearance that Telarc has in fact committed these forces to a complete Mahler cycle, I look forward to a cycle that may just measure up to the Bernstein II cycle without being a clone of it. And to a fresh performance of the Mahler 6th by Zander to eventually replace an absolutely shattering Mahler 6th, on Carlton Classics, which Zander recorded with his own Boston Philharmonic Orchestra. This particular recording is an "underground" masterpiece - almost impossible to find but well worth the search. It is THAT definitive!

Bob Zeidler

GUSTAV MAHLER (1860-1911) enjoys very nearly the same popularity today as Tschaikovsky did thirty years ago when the classical music bug bit me and I started collecting long-playing records. Mahler's very popularity has an ambiguous effect on his music, however, since in the proliferation of concert and recorded performances really exceptional interpretations become fewer while a certain characterless rote becomes the norm. Those who once felt passionately about the music, as they heard it from Titans like Bruno Walter or Hermann Scherchen, find themselves growing averse to the "Warhorse Syndrome" of overexposed masterpieces. Ennui sets in...Where it concerns Mahler, an antidote exists in the remarkable interpretive work of Benjamin Zander, who has made it his mission over two decades to renew the kaleidoscopic strangeness of the nine great symphonies and the symphonic songs. A year or so ago, Telarc released Zander's version of the Ninth Symphony, with the Philharmonia Orchestra, and one could justly say that this represented the work's most revealing performance since Walter committed it to 78RPM platters in Vienna in 1938...The opening Funeral March might seem slow in comparison to other readings, but this is because Zander wants to bring out the Kafkaesque grotesquery in it. The reiterated rhythm of the opening trumpet-signal (almost continuously present) reveals its kinship (practically its identity) with the "Fate Theme" from Beethoven's Fifth. There are wonderful touches, such as the substitution of the flute for the trumpet in the third of the three final reiterations of the trumpet-signal at the end of the First Movement. Many conductors attempt to make of the Second Movement a reprise-in-variation of the First. Zander sees it as a contrast. He sees the Scherzo as a bizarre apotheosis of the Viennese waltz, weirder than either of the two "Nachtmusik" movements of the Seventh Symphony. The Adagietto is not, for Zander, a piece of dripping sentiment or a musical obsequy, but a dignified expression of love and contentment. To the Finale - with its hybrid of sonata, rondo, fugue, and chorale - Zander brings a spirit of triumphant unity, making it truly the reconciliation of all the foregoing contradictions and incommensurabilities...As in the case of Zander's Ninth, Telarc gives us, at no increase in the price, an extra disc containing a seventy-five minute lecture by Zander on the symphony, with abundant musical illustration. Zander is a superb lecturer and his exposition illuminates the score in all sorts of unexpected ways. Mahler-lovers must (MUST) buy this disc. The uninitiated but curious will discover in it the best possible entrée into the life-altering experience of Mahler's music...

Benjamin Zander could probably make baroque music interesting to me the way he is able to captivate the listener with his insights to music. As a listener, it's quite easy to feel the passion that Mr. Zander has for the music about which he speaks. Telarc is quite generous to provide the bonus commentary disc in this set. It's over 70 minutes of insight into one of the greatest late Romantic symphonies ever written. Having heard the commentary on Mahler's 5th symphony over 5 times now, I'm convinced that it alone is worth the price of the CD. It's a fascinating voyage into the music of Mahler and helps break down the complexities of Mahler so that you can further enhance your appreciation of this great work.

Accompanying this great commentary is actually a very fine recording of the 5th symphony. The reason that I don't give this CD a 5 star rating is for one simple reason---lack of rich deep banging bass. This is semi-disappointing, because Telarc has a reputation for bass-heavy recordings, and that is why I've been such a fan of their recordings. If you've heard the opening 2 minutes of Bernstein's or even Chailly's recording and are familiar with the sound, you'll easily be able to tell the difference in the recorded sound. This is perhaps not the fault of Telarc. It could very well be a balance of sound that Mr. Zander was trying to achieve. Regardless of the motive behind it, the final product comes up just short of the level of Bernstein's recording on DG--at least in the loudest passages of the symphony.

If you can ignore that one problem area of this recording, what is left is a great recording of the Mahler 5. Particularly impressive is how Zander has the Philharmonia Orchestra playing on the Adagietto. This is one of those movements that has become quite popular and is usually played slow. In the commentary, Mr. Zander explains that the Adagio has been played increasingly slower over time, which was not the intention of Mahler. In fact, a more flowing tempo is to be used. This flowing tempo actually is quite effective and yet it never sounds rushed. The result is quite lovely. Credit must be given to the string players of the Philharmonia as well as the trumpets and horns. They all play wonderfully on this recording. In summary, this is definitely a CD worth buying not only for the commentary, but also the performance. I'm anxiously awaiting the release of Zander's next recording--Mahler's 4th Symphony.

I have to say that this is the best Mahler 5 I've listened to so far. I have heard Solti, Bernstein-Sony and Kubelik. Mr.Zander gives a extensive lecture on disk 2 about the piece and knows it quite exceedingly. He also gives us musical examples from his and other recordings. He is definetly a Mahler scholar. His extremely firey and passionate view is not be compared and his structural awareness throughout is evident which makes it so much bigger. So all in all if you want to know more about Mahler intellectually and emotionally, this 2 disk set is for you my friend.

I have heard many performances of Mahler's Fifth Symphony by an assortment of conductors and orchestras over the years. In the hearing of those performances, I was always struck at how distant Mahler seemed to place himself from his audience (at any rate from me.) Or, as I now look back, was it the conductor's interpretation that distanced Mahler from me? In this new recording by Benjamin Zander and the Philharmonia Orchestra, I was struck at not only the verve of the performance, but by a new found richness of tempo. Indeed, I have never heard Mahler played with such clarity. Thanks to Maestro Zander's brilliant interpretation of the score (as well as an extraordinary performance on the part of orchestra,) he managed to bring Mahler from what I had experienced as being distant into a new spirit of intimacy which I, quite frankly, found to be breathtaking. I believe that we have found the key to Mahler through Zander and for this I am truly grateful.

Benjamin Zander with the Philharmonia Orchestra here deliver one of the most clear-sighted, freshly inspired performances of Mahler's Fifth Symphony ever recorded.
Trying to make sure that every change of tempo, every melodic strand, every instrument group (or solo) is clearly audible within the complex contrapuntal textures of this mammoth symphony, as is done here, could lead to a loose and uninvolved affair, but Zander's highly intelligent vision and firm grasp of the overall structure (of both the individual movements and the symphony as a whole), combined with truly exquisite rubato and lovely legato phrasing, prevents this, making for a feeling of sustained momentum and cohesion that is quite riveting (comparable to Bruno Walter's great recording of 1947: if only that recording could have been in digital stereo!). At the same time Benjamin Zander's approach conveys a deep understanding of all the meanings behind the different melodic strands and notes (for as far as any 'meanings' can be fixed) and how they should interact, so that when the instruments - solowise or as a group - speak (amongst each other, or just by themselves), they do so with a deep sincerity and conviction. Zander convincingly conveys to us the idea of this symphony being a giant, organic weave.
It is Zander's explicit view (as he says in his insightful but not to be overrated discussion on the bonus CD) that the orchestra in this symphony should in the first place be (like) a group of very well playing s o l o i s t s. And the conductor should then be there to lead those fine soloists along. (As Mahler said: the conductor is just a necessary evil.) And Zander succeeds magnificently! The orchestra is cleanly but not too closely recorded, allowing the sound to widely expand in climaxes, and at the same time enhancing 'atmosphere' in pianissimos, during which Benjamin Zander's conducting (and of course the hushed intensity of the orchestral playing!) is often spellbinding. The Philharmonia Orchestra under Benjamin Zander, to my idea, really reach the ultimate in Mahler, from the greatest outbursts of Angst or joy, through the music of hushed tenderness and love, to those passages of despair in which the music seems to be 'yelling in pianissimo'. (Take also his superb Mahler 9 on the same label.)
The end result is a transparent, cohesive performance of sustained momentum, characterized by wonderfully natural rubato and songful legato phrasing (the Adagietto has never sounded so much like a song without words!), but without too much (emotional) excess. Pure, vintage Mahler, which can, I think, be regarded as a benchmark for all other recordings. I love it. The only thing I keep expecting but which never follows after each hearing of this CD is the roaring applause ;-)

As usual in the Telarc releases with Maestro Zander and the Philharmonia, this recording features a bonus commentary CD of close to 80 minutes. He makes a strong argument for the unity and coherence of the work's motivitic structure, and devotes extra time to issues of interpretation in the Scherzo and Adagietto. His discussion of Mahler's unique orchestration, and counterpoint, where each voice of the orchestra is made to feel equally important, is very instructive. The comparative musical examples from within and outside of Mahler's work, even including an excerpt from Wagner's Meistersinger Prelude, are well handled too. It was interesting in this disc to hear a little of Mahler's own performance of the first movement on piano, and how the composer uses rubato to achieve a sound that defies exact musical notation. The conductor makes a good argument for his choice of a more flowing tempo in the Adagietto, to give thematic cohesion with the same melodies in the finale. My only minor quibble is that during the Adagietto, the conductor augments his fine piano playing with a little singing along. I would have preferred to have heard the piano alone. On the other side of the coin, his playing of the opening of the second movement is quite arresting.

The performance is marked by excellent ensemble and solo playing from the brass in the first and third movements, and true pianissimo, where at times the strings and percussion are barely audible. Similar to his more recent release of Bruckner's 5th Symphony, the conductor refuses to slow down for the coda, but maintains a steady basic tempo throughout the final movement. As with the other release, I found this performance did not suffer as a result. The excellent Telarc recording adds to not only the sonority but the richness of detail in the part writing. The dramatic contrasts in this score, as in the other releases, are heard to good effect.

The documentation is well written too. Overall, a very satisfying experience, and indispensable for devotees of this conductor. My favourite performance of this symphony remains the classic Karajan account with the Berlin Philharmonic, with in my view incomparable brass playing, but this one is not far behind it. It does have the advantage of more modern, detailed sound quality.

Having bought (and listened to) quite a lot of Mahler fifths (more than any other Mahler work), I was wondering whether I was really in need of yet another one. And while there were many positive reviews on American Amazon (although by none of the usual suspects), Classics Today's David Hurwitz was, under a very thin veneer of politeness, more than a little ill disposed towards Zander. Since I have over the years come to respect Hurwitz's opinion on Mahler (his strong advocacies of a.o. Barshai's and Levine's fifth and Gielen's and Bertini's complete cycles were real eyeopeners; and I found his criticism of Haitink's mid 1980 Berlin recordings in accordance with my own opinion) I dithered and dallied to welcome this Zander into my collection. After having managed to procure his first, third, fourth, sixth and ninth Mahlers on the cheap (through Amazon marketplace), immensely liking his spoken introductions to these works on separate CDs and, more importantly, being more than impressed by what I heard musically, I finally decided to have a go. And no, I was not disappointed, but not at all. Hurwitz accuses Zander of not delivering musically what he promises verbally. But on listening to both CDs I found that this is precisely what Zander does. That Hurwitz may not like this particular interpretation is an altogether different matter, although on comparing Barshai and Levine with Zander I don't understand why he should not. Yes, the percussion may not always be ideal (but to say that the percussion stinks, or words to that effect, is taking things a bit too far), but there are so many things that are better, nay, differently (italics intended) done from others, such as the audible presence of the contra bassoon (which is often drowned out by, or at best blended in with its surroundings), or the different mutes used by the trumpets, which lends them a quite different sonority, or the abundant use of portamento and rubato (an excerpt of a 1926 recording by Mengelberg and the Concertgebouw on the discussion disc well illustrates Mahler's original ideas about the use of portamento) all make this a most interestingly different reading of Mahler's most well known and oft recorded symphony. And while this may be so, I can say in all honesty that the discussion disc is marvelous, it almost alone is worth the money of the set. One of the most instructing things is his illustration of what a composer can do with counterpoint by letting us hear examples by Beethoven (well-ordered), R. Strauss (mayhem) and Wagner (all the important operatic tunes in one overture) and how Mahler combines these various ideas and techniques into the fifth. Hurwitz for some reason has obviously taken a dislike to Zander, but in my opinion this degrades Hurwitz's professional stature somewhat. I understand that a Mahler Two by Zander is underway (including discussion disc), it was recorded at least and, according to Zander, "in the process of being edited". I for one can't wait to get my hands on that one. For the time being I will certainly play this version of the fifth many times. It's really worth the investment of the few bucks it now costs.

An absolutely crisp and clear interpretation AND recording of Mahler 5th. I am hearing it in my AKG headphones and my goodness, the sound quality is just beautiful. I can feel the absolute pin-drop silence in the background studio and cannot discern any hiss in the background, clearly showing the low noise due to the direct-stream-digital technology. The quality of overall production of the CD matches the quality of the other Telarc label I have with Zander - Mahler's 1st.

The other recording I have of THE 5 is that of Karajan's. While I like that a lot, this much more modern recording of Zander's brings out each instrument with clarity, of course coupled with exceptional performances and conducting. Somehow I always feel I hear more instruments with Zander's conducting. The texture intended by the composer just comes out so clearly.

Bravo Maestro Zander and Philharmonia ! You make me proud to be a Mahler fan.

This recording earns my highest recommendation. The sound quality and performance are both exemplary; moreover, what makes this release indispensable is the bonus disk, a 78-minute lecture (illustrated with many musical examples) on Mahler that was recorded by conductor Benjamin Zander. If you are a long-time Mahlerian, then, you will find this release fascinating; if you have never really had much use for Mahler's music, perhaps this release will alter your perspective. I recommend it with unbridled, passionate enthusiasm.