Customer Reviews

Mahler: Symphony No. 2 ("Resurrection")

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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Klemperer's big break came when he impressed Mahler by playing a piano reduction of the first movement of this symphony. He also conducted the offstage band in a performance of this work, again, much to the liking of Mahler. One would only expect the best in the hands of the master's apprentice and here that is what we get.

Not only does Klemperer's aesthetics match those of Mahler's, but he has also lead an equally tragic life. Like Mahler, he never became bitter over the tragedies and injustices that he encountered. He triumphed over all of them.

For these reasons, when Klemperer interprets Mahler, he BECOMES Mahler. This is crucial here in probably the most emotionally expansive of the Mahler symphonies, if not all of classical music. So much of Mahler's personality is imbedded into the work that if one attempts to add their personal stamp to the interpretation, it only diminishes Mahler's message. Klemperer embodies Mahler in mind, body, and spirit.

He is aided by the immortal Schwartzkopf and the Philharmonia. Now some have complained about the technical deficiencies of this performance. Like Furtwangler, Klemperer is most concerned with the architectural and organic elements of music, something all too rare in today's musicians. The imprecision exhibited here is a very small sacrifice to pay for the towering, eloquent rendering we have here.

Here is one of my favorite Mahler recordings. The only other 2nd that I feel is in the same class is the Hermann Scherchen recording with the Vienna State Opera.

I can't express my feeling when I heard this recording. Absolutely great. The sound is not Digital but such a great recording is worth aquiring even though the sound is not perfect. Being in one disk is another advantage.

This is the recording that introduced me to Mahler's 2nd, and I'm glad that I chose Klemperer (whose name was, at the time, not as familiar to me as certain other conductors) over the competition. OK is a great conductor in Mahler, and the 2nd was his specialty -- his 9th is pretty good, too -- which is a good a combination. I have since obtained his live recording from 1965 with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and I was blown away. It is magnificent, and the mezzo soloist is Dame Janet Baker, whose rendition of the fourth movement almost brings tears to my eyes. It doesn't seem to be available on Amazon.com...but you can probably get it in any decent store for about the same price as this recording. It is on EMI as well, in the "Klemperer Legacy" series. The sound is not quite up to modern standards, but it is in stereo and is perfectly acceptable, and you will not regret purchasing it.

This recording is one of the best around of Mahler's 2nd. Klemperer was one of the great conductors of this century and one of the great conductors of Mahler as well, and it shows in this recording. An excellent buy.

I am not going to declare that this is the definitive performance of this deservedly very popular Mahler symphony. I have been fortunate to hear several different interpretations and enjoy them all, Mahler's score is so rich that it can take several different methods/styles of interpretation. Klemperer's performance is enhanced by the superb contributions of Elizabeth Schwarzkopf, and the Philharmonia Chorus, who sing almost like angels at the end. Unlike many of his other recordings he does not maintain a slow tempo through the entire symphony; the opening movement is quite brisk, and the finale is taken more slowly, which adds to its spiritual impact. I believe the original recording, made in the 1960s, was supervised by Walter Legge, and the balance between voices and orchestra is excellent. I cannot comment on the success of the digital remastering, but if the sound is less than ideal, it remains very good. The orchestral playing is not in the same class as the Chicago Symphony for Solti or Abbado, but it is respectable. The entire symphony has been released on 1 CD, at medium price. The documentation, which includes an English translation of the German text, is excellent. It is a fine bargain. There is a new re-release of this performance on EMI's Great Recordings of the Century label, for slightly less money than this issue. Perhaps the perceived faults in this issue's recording quality have now been corrected.

This is the very first CD of Resurrection Symphony I bought, recommended by a Penguin Guide review and it has served me as a touchstone recording against which other recordings were tested. And very few matched it ever since! The strength of Klemperer's reading lies in the way the conductor never loses overall perspective of the entire symphony, while achieving maximum impact in every climax and every crucial moment. Even moments of serene silence are perfectly judged in the context of the whole. As a result, there is a sense of inevitability in the way the music culminates in the massive final apotheosis that sounds all the more transcendent, not because of the volume of the sound, but because of all that went before. This is THE great recording of this symphony, alonside Stokowski's ginormous, apocalyptic Prom Live recording (BBC Legend).

I prefer this warm and wide original stereo version to the too clear remastering of the 'Great Recordings of the 20th Century' version.

Klemperer at his very best. Total control of an immense conception that matches Mahler bar by bar. You cannot help but wonder at ths performance, no other recording competes.

I am a relatively new fan of Gustav Mahler. Within the past two months I have collected just about every conductor's version of what has become my favorite piece. I have to say that in my humble opinion this version of 'Resurrection' stands head and shoulders above all others. I was so delighted that I put on my audiophile headphones and listened to it all day. When not using the headphones I am listening to Mirage speakers through a Marantz CD player and an NAD amplifier. I really don't think you can really appreciate Mahler if you are listening with anything less than this. It is truly a joy to hear in this day and age of the ITUNES and IPHONES. I really don't think it matters which version of Mahler you are hearing if you are listening through an IPOD. But this is just my opinion and we all know what they say about opinions. I just wanted to share this with you as a former IPOD user who really wasn't able to distinguish the idionsynchrocies of the music that I was hearing.

A truly engaging work that is spellbinding throughout. The soundstage and dynamics is phenomenal given the 1963 recording. One of my favourite CDs for audio auditions for symphonic grandeur at its best.

As heralded as this recording is, the CD simply does not reflect a good transfer from analog to digital. Compared to other performances of this work, the sound seems dead at times and the recording level extremely inconsistent at others. The finale is as advertised--together and generally inspirational. But it doesn't make up for the flaws noted above. The tempi are a bit unusual as well, ranging from plodding to agitatingly quick. Klemperer may have been one of the greats, but based on this recording alone, I have some doubts. Good, but not great.