Mahler: Symphony No. 10

Gustav Mahler (Composer), Simon Rattle (Conductor), Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Simon Rattle
• Composer: Gustav Mahler
• Audio CD (April 14, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: EMI
• ASIN: B000002RSN
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #326,833 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Symphony No. 10 In F Sharp: I. Adagio

2. Symphony No. 10 In F Sharp: II. Scherzo

3. Symphony No. 10 In F Sharp: III. Purgatorio (Allegro Moderato)

4. Symphony No. 10 In F Sharp: IV. (Scherzo)

5. Symphony No. 10 In F Sharp: V. Finale

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This WAS the recording to own, June 21, 2001

By 

"s_molman" (CT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (Audio CD)

until Rattle completely outdid himself with the new BPO recording of this work. The orchestra is better, the sound is better, and the interpretation is deeper and more understanding. I owned this one for years and always enjoyed it. It's now in the trade-in pile.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Listen for all Mahler fans..., May 31, 2000

By 

nctomatoman (Raleigh, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (Audio CD)

No recording of the music of Gustav Mahler moves me to the degree that this one does. From the other-wordly opening viola theme - surely one of the loneliest phrases ever written - to the final leap of the strings that seems to signify his final reaching out to the world, one is left forever changed by this music.

In comparing this recording and interpretation to other Cooke reconstructions (Sanderling, Inbal, Wigglesworth - regrettably I have not yet heard Ormandy, Levine or Chailly), the pacing and instrumentation just feels "right". Three of the noteworthy details from this version, in my opinion, are the earthshattering renditions of "the chord" that mark the emotional acme of the first and final movements, the drum strokes that link the fourth and final movements (beware listening in headphones - these will shake your very bones!), the painfully lovely flute solo at the start of the final movement, and the entire resolution of the final movement, from "the chord" to the end of the symphony.

The two other realizations that I own - Mazetti by Slatkin, and Wheeler by Olson from the Mahlerfest event, just don't sound convincingly "Mahler" to me - in places too cluttered, in other places with incorrect orchestration, though each recreation of this perhaps most emotionally powerful of Mahler's symphonies is essestial and fascinating listening. Now, if only the Carpenter recreation of Faberman could be reinstated to the catalog (it came and went in the blink of an eye).

Though I find the most interesting music to lie in the first, third and fifth movements, the entire symphony stands with the greatest of Mahler's inspirations, and one can only wonder what this masterpiece would sound like if it were completed by the composer. Nonetheless, we are fortunate to have recordings like this available for us to appreciate - they enhance our world.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forever an unfinished symphony?, January 10, 2000

By 

Andrew Iwasyszyn (England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (Audio CD)

Cooke said himself that Mahler's tenth would never be in itself a complete work of art and all he has done is to put a more substancial form to a thin framework. However, to dismiss this work because of it is a huge mistake. The thematic intent is all Mahler's: Cooke just added some orchestration to some of the movements, but either way it is powerful to the extreme, the climax following the quiet musing in the first movement is arguably the most moving passage written by any composer ever and the way in which it turns full circle and finishes with the adagio, which is warmer than the nineth and with more hope, is just sublime. Rattle is meticulous and at the same time brings out white-hot excitement from the music. He is without doubt the best conductor alive today, especially in this kind of music.