Customer Reviews

Mahler: Symphony No. 1

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Horenstein's 1969 Mahler 1st has long been my stereo benchmark, but now it has to share the spotlight with this phenomenal live 1979 Kubelik, which supplants an earlier studio recording on DG. Kubelik's finale even surpasses Horenstein's, especially in the Coda - it's the most thrilling I have ever heard.

Kubelik's DG recording had rather glaring sound - this one from Audite is, along with a Barshai 5th, the best sounding Mahler in my collection. As with any live performance, there are a few minor blemishes (e.g., a couple of horn muffs in the 1st mvt) of no great import - the Horenstein has a few, too, and that was a studio recording.

If Horenstein's is a more brooding, sardonic, older man's Mahler - at 56:35 it's five minutes slower - then Kubelik's is a mellower, but more exultant, younger man's view. Of course, both were older men when they recorded these: Horenstein was 70, and Kubelik was 65. In the past, my quibbles regarding Horenstein's 1st were the rather fast third mvt. (almost two minutes faster than his 1952 First on Vox), and a rather stately last mvt. (at 22:14, it's the slowest of any performance I own). I also missed the earlier, far more liberal use of string portamento - I feel that's the way Mahler envisioned it (Kubelik is essentially modern, with nary a slide in sight).

My minor objections to Kubelik's earlier DG recording, besides the sound, were some over-exuberant trumpet playing in III's klezmer music, and an over-fast finale (17:40). Now all of III is an unalloyed joy, and the finale's tempo of 19:18 feels perfect. Throughout this entire performance, Kubelik is just that more gemutlich, ever so slightly stretching key phrases to make them sound more touching. There is more of a rustic atmosphere here than previously. And I especially like the contrabass solo in III, moaning away with optimum satire.

Three other recordings - in old mono sound, and thus more for the collector than the general listener - also stand apart in my mind: the earlier Horenstein, the 1952 live F. Charles Adler, and a 1949 account by Ernest Borsamsky. Horenstein's first one is probably still my ultimate benchmark 1st: his old Vienna Symphony likely included a few players who had heard Mahler conduct, and there is an old world patina to the whole affair that I find rather special. Adler knew Mahler and prepared the chorus for a Mahler performance of the 8th - his 1st is even slower than Horenstein's and very old-fashioned, if not as well played. Borsamsky - thought by some to be a pseudonym for possibly Abendroth or Fricsay - features some very lovely string playing. I have reviewed it elsewhere at Amazon.

With that ethereal seven-octave note in the strings, the Mahler 1st ushers us into a new symphonic world. Has any composer under 40 given us a finer first effort? I envy those of you who are coming to this marvellous work for the first time.

Choosing between this 1979 live performance and Rafael Kubelik's justly renowned 1967 studio recording on DG (available in at least 4 different CD issues, including a boxed set of his complete Mahler symphonic cycle) is not easy. Both have much to recommend them--and to complicate matters, there's also a 1953 (mono) recording on Decca. Either choice, though, reveals Kubelik as perhaps the leading exponent, living or dead, of Mahler's First Symphony. Unlike many other interpreters (notably Leonard Bernstein), Kubelik wisely avoids hindsight in conducting this work, resists the temptation to inflate it to the scale of one of Mahler's later symphonies. Instead, he gives it to us straight.

Differences between the DG and Audite recordings? For a start, the Audite has MUCH nicer sound, a natural concert-hall balance that lets you hear what Kubelik, the orchestra--and Mahler--are up to. Kubelik takes slightly broader tempi in the third and fourth movements, while omitting the repeats in the first two. There's also a somewhat "looser" sense of pulse in the Audite, which on first listen may sound a little herky-jerky but comes to make more sense musically on subsequent listens. The more varied pulse, combined with the slightly more expansive approach, gives the music breathing room it didn't have in 1967. The main difference, though, is that Kubelik in 1979 had evidently thought long and hard about the score, and goes deeper into it--conveying its contrasting moods more tellingly than he did in 1967. In the third movement, for example, there's a deliciously kaleidoscopic transformation from the "funeral march" parody into the incongruous klezmer-band interlude, a far more subtle segue than the stark, episodic juxtaposition presented in so many performances.

There's a tradeoff, in that the DG version (which offers a bonus in the form of the "Songs of a Wayfarer," somewhat oversung by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau) gives us a freshness and youthfulness that are appropriate to the First (Mahler was in his 20s when he composed it, after all) and which are less evident in the Audite. So I suppose a choice comes down to youth vs. experience, and I'm going with the greater "wisdom" of the older man. Either recording, though, is recognizably the product of the same basic sensibility.

At present there are three Kubelik recordings of Mahler's first symphony in the market. We have the very fine 1967 DG recording, one of the very best interpretations from Kubelik's BRSO cycle. And recently Audite released this exceptionally fine live performance from the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz, made in 1979, where Kubelik conducts BRSO in concert. Back in the catalogue is also an earlier mono account with Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded 1954 (Label Decca: it is now available at www.amazon.de in Germany).

The early Vienna recording has a sense of discovery about it, like Bruno Walter's NYPO mono recording of the same work. The two later recordings (DG and Audite), by contrast, display more developed and consistent interpretations, demonstrating Kubelik's superb grasp of the "Bohemian" character of the symphony. The interpretations are quite similar. The first movement is a demonstration in clarity and freshness, miles away from the overweight overload that for example Bernstein adds to the music. The second movement is a true ländler, taken in one breath. In the third movement, note for instance how Kubelik emphasizes the kletzmer-like trumpet playing, thus presenting a sexy, vulgar tone that is truly idiomatic with Mahler's music. The finale gets a clear and balanced account, consistent with Kubelik's understanding of the work as a whole.

Comparing the DG disc with the Audite, the latter has richer and more natural stereo sound. The interpretation is also somewhat broader. Considering the Decca mono, it is a slightly younger man's view of a young man's first symphony, less well recorded and played.

Mahlerites should have all three. But budget-minded collectors can buy the DG account with confidence. Hifi enthusiasts are advised to consider the live Audite record.

This is such an incredible performance...in so many ways it is defitely about nature. The incredible bird song opening to the way the octaves in the strings are made to sound so right. Sadly, time has been most unkind to Kubelik..his forte was Mahler and Dvorak at a time when both composers were considered second rate.

I had the good fortune of studying clarinet in Munich with a clarinetist from this orchestra...this gentleman always spoke highly of the incredible intensity that Kubelik brought to Mahler. Yes, the Bavarian Radio is a front rank orchestra. I know of very few groups who can play the Mahler Titan in such an epic way...so if you want the ultimate Titan just have a listen and you will know what I am saying...

Kubelik was an admirer of Mahler and his music, and took great pains and effort in conducting this music so dear to him. Nowhere is the quality of Kubelik's recordings so apparent than in Kubelik's Mahler canon on DGG, one of the first Mahler cycles ever to be recorded.

Now Audite is presenting us a treasure trove of live recordings from Kubelik's Mahler concerts. Recorded at various locations (including Japan) and dates (spanning from the 60s to the 80s), Kubelik's live Mahlers are more fiery and spontaneous than his studios. I am not saying that they are better - both the DGGs and the Audite's are extremely high quality recordings that together show the dichotomy and versatility of Kubelik's approach to Mahler, and both equally demand to be heard. But for the Mahlerian who thinks he knows Kubelik's Mahler, the greater spontaneity and risk-taking found in the Audite series will make you rethink (including me I confess!).

This Kubelik's M1 is one of the finest gems, within the Audite series and measured against other Mahler recordings. Together with the Audite's 3rd and the 7th, it is for me an essential Mahler recording to possess, to experience, and to share.

Credit to Audite for bringing back Kubelik's live Mahlers to this appreciative Mahlerian! And for those who have not heard the good news, Tahra, another company with foresight, has recently bought out a Kubelik's live M5.

I do not think that everything that a work has to be offered can be gleaned from one recording, and therefore have never considered a specific recording of any work to be "difinitive". But this one gets as close as any I have ever heard. Don't hesitate to buy it. It was recorded live, but the sound is spectacular, and Kubelik is in inspired form. The BRSO plays their pants off for him, and the audience is silent. If you think his studio recording (often recognized as the best recording) is the best, wait until you hear this one, though for some it may not justify the investment. If you haven't heard this symphony or Kubelik's interpretation of it, it more than justifies the price. Go buy it!

Although this is essentially the same vibrantly songful and flowing interpretation as that of his famous DG studio recording, it is more sharply characterized, especially in the third and fourth movements, and the sound quality is distinctly more full bodied than the rather thin, tinny sounding (the trumpets in particular sound like toys) DG. I strongly recommend it

I don't have much to add except to say that Kubelik's greatest strength with Mahler's music was that he never overthought it. Many readings of the First Sym. feel studied and overly polished. Kubelik's nature pictures in the first and second movement are appealingly direct. The forest effects in the first movement crop up spontaneously, as if we are walking through the woods at dawn by his side. Kubelik's orchestra isn't technically flawless in this live 1979 concert -- expect a few horn bobbles -- and the sonics, though good for broadcast stereo, don't greatly surpass what DG provided in the studio. The one big advantage is that the strings aren't thin and edgy, a glaring fault in DG's engineering.

Is everything remarkable from beginning to end? Not quite. Other conductors have brought better discipline and evoked more atmosphere. What's so pleasing here is that Kubelik carries each movement along in a single sweep, bringing exuberance to the overall work. This is especially convincing in the Scherzo and finale, two movements that tend to lurch under many conductors. Given the added spontaneity of a live event, I think I prefer this Audite CD to its DG studio compansion, but both are treasures in the huge Mahler discography.

Kubelik's is an acclaimed and popular treatment that highlights rustic folk aspects. It's well-performed, muscular, quite brisk (Kubelik is typicall too brisk on Mahler), and robust. And overrated.

Neither this recording, nor his earlier studio version, are in the same league as the definitive Mahler First of Jascha Horenstein. Contrary to the hopes of some, Horenstein's recordings---not Kubelik's, Bernstein's, etc.---will always remain the unrivaled benchmarks for the First. Sir John Barbirolli's 1957 performance with Halle is another that earns the right to be considered a benchmark. Claudio Abbado's 2009 performance with the Lucerne Festival (on DVD) also deserves consideration with the greatest.

Kubelik is rough-edged and clumsy next to the mastery of nuance, texture, suspense, and drama captured by Horenstein or Barbirolli.

Because the Horenstein and Barbirolli recordings are hard to find and expensive, Kubelik is one of many in the pack of acceptable secondary choices, including sets by Walter, Boulez, Abbado/Chicago, etc.

Always when I listen to Kubelik's accounts of Maher Symphonies, I can sense his immense respect and passion for the music. This vibrant live performance of Titan, recorded stereo in 1979 with Bavarian Radio SO, is no exception.

Not just the titanic grandeur and sublime beauty of playing which stands out, but also the inner pulse and energy he generates from each instrument create exceptionally rich listening experience.

Reasonablly well recorded with enough presence and space. Well worth adding to your Mahler collection. Why did they cut applause out!!