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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but by no means great Mahler,
By
This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 3 [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)
Michael Tilson Thomas is a phenomenal music director. He inherited the San Francisco Symphony in 1995 and has, since then, turned the band, which was already quite accomplished under Herbert Blomstedt's tutelage, into a world class ensemble in the truest since. Despite its few (but glaring) weakness - bad flutes and violins that tend towards thinness - the San Francisco Symphony boasts consistently fine playing and musically intelligent contributions from the soloists - droll clarinets, boisterous bassoons, a horn section second to none, beautiful lower strings, and rich, big toned lower brass. Listening to this ensemble - an ensemble in the truest sense of the word - is always a joy. Thus, when one hears a performance like this, which, despite first class playing, falls short of being a success, the blame clearly lies at the hands of the conductor.
Objectively looking at Michael Tilson Thomas's ongoing Mahler cycle has been increasingly difficult for me mainly because, the more familiar I become with Thomas's conducting style, the more egregious the apparent faults become. Thomas's penchant for rubato and mannered stylization started off as an interesting, if unnecessary, detail in the 6th and 1st symphonies. It became a bit more problematic in the 2rd. And finally, it became irritatingly obnoxious in the 7th and 5th symphonies. Thomas's insistence on smothering his interpretations with a thick coat of decorative frosting and fussy, mannered detail leaves a fluffy, decadent, at times even saccharine aftertaste which belies the often overwhelmingly high-level of musical nourishment these recordings offer. Indeed, nearly every other musical choice Thomas makes is a good one - it's just a shame he cannot discern between the good and bad. There is really only one real high point to this release - the second movement - which is nearly perfect. Although a tad too precious for my tastes, the movement possesses all the correct tempo changes, perfectly balanced ensemble, and the correct amount of nimble buoyancy. Everywhere else, Thomas misses the mark. The main problem with the first movement is epitomized by Thomas's handling of the "summer storm" outburst. Where Mahler asks for vulgar, Thomas responds with a perfectly balanced, overly polite disintegration that is hardly earth shattering. Overall, the dichotomy between the two marches is missing; the minor march lacks the craggy darkness and grotesqueries while the major march lacks the sense of awakening and rebirth. And although the contributions from the players are wonderful - Mark H. Lawerence's solo is like a dream - the movement lacks in the emotional extremes so necessary for this movements success. Thomas does shape the transitions between the two marches effectively and many beautiful moments abound throughout the movement, but on the whole, Thomas takes too much time to say what he has to say. As a direct comparison, listen to Bernstein's recording which finds the conductor leading a determinedly forward moving movement. For all the criticism Bernstein receives as an overly emotional conductor, his conception of this movement is quite controlled, focused, and flowing as compared to Thomas's meandering stroll through the music's various episodes. The scherzo proper goes well enough. The winds have character, the horns capture the earthy quality of the score, and the strings really dig into their parts. And then there's the trio, which is excruciatingly slow, again, despite wonderful playing from the posthorn and other soloists. At the return of the trio, it seems Thomas is going even slower than before, dragging the music almost to the breaking point before the coda. However, the coda goes well enough (although more tam tam would have been nice) with the proper amount of pomp and circumstance. The two vocal movements run smoothly but lack any real character. Michelle DeYoung is usually a vocally magnificent soloist, but here her singing seems overly reserved and calculated; the movement as a whole sounds chillingly cool. Her wide vibrato does not always suite the music well either. The chorus, particularly the Pacific Boys Choir, sings faithfully in the fifth movement, however, again, the humanity Mahler is so desperately trying to represent is somehow conspicuously absent from the reading. It sounds calculated, micro-managed, and lacks the necessary transcendence. However, the top to bottom clarity of texture is quite extraordinary - the fact that the bassoons are perfectly audible during the large brass swells at the close of the fifth movement really says something about Thomas's sense of orchestral balance. The finale features wonderful contributions from the strings, which add a great deal of warmth to this otherwise cooler account of the symphony. Thomas stretches the music to the breaking point several times, and even though Tempo I is quite flowing and well paced, the movement as a whole still feels long. Thomas seems to climax too soon, resulting in an episodic finale that doesn't quite build towards the final passages as others do - Ricardo Chailly's Royal Concertgebouw 3rd is a fantastic example of a well-balanced architectural finale that concludes with tremendous level of satisfaction. In Thomas's hands, the final passages, as powerful as they are here, are so painfully slow - it feels as if Thomas has purchased gravitas (or at least his idea of gravitas) at the expense of taste. Beautiful, hair-raising moments abound in this finale, but on the whole, it never really captures the brilliant architecture of the music. Chailly's architectural grasp, on the other hand, is astounding. His recording, along with Bernstein's legendary New York Philharmonic recordings, are reference. On a side note, I think it is important to discuss the nature of the sound of the San Francisco Symphony in these recordings. The winds are quite lively, playful, and at times even coquettish. The brass is rich, powerful, but never overbearing. The percussion, while excellent as a section, has never been captured faithfully by the engineers - only in forte does the timpani cut through the texture with any real acuity. The strings are rich, plush and bright. Again, the orchestra itself really is something, and, as far as orchestral perfection goes, the San Francisco Symphony delivers a near perfect performance, despite its bright sheen. Overall, Michael Tilson Thomas is quite well versed in Mahler and there is, despite all the shortcomings, a profundity of incite here. The playing is top notch, the contributions from the soloists are wonderful, and many of Thomas choices are good. However, his insistence on micro-managing every aspect of the score prevents his orchestra from creating a true idiomatic Mahler sound. The first movement lacks the necessary dichotomy between the marches and, thus, the tension falls flat. Thomas's tight grip keeps the forth and fifth movement stubbornly earthbound. And the architecture of the finale is as odd with Thomas's overly expressive account. It is frustrating, really, when everything is perfect on paper but fails in reality. This most expansive and disparate of Mahler symphonies needs a conductor who can pull together the sprawling universe of Mahler's sound world and instill cohesion and apply structure. Here, Thomas fails. The kindertotenleider fares no better. A tepid, lifeless contribution from the orchestra is met with dry-eyed singing from Michelle DeYoung. Disappointing.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Too much emphasis on perfect playing - not enough character.,
By
This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 3 [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)
Perfect playing but mostly characterless. The brass often plays a sort of loud legato as if trying hard not to insult our ears with different articulations and accents as this music- full of bohemian and Austrian Folk influences- requires. The way several sections in orchestra phrase is not in line with the way the music is written. It is as if "method" had taken over and this is among the most glaring shortcoming an ensemble can have (a disturbing trend that is becoming more and more prevalent today). Compare this performance to Abbado's recording with the Vienna Philharmonic on DGG: you will notice the difference orchestral personality makes as well as a sound and phrasing that makes the music sound like it came from there - which it did. Method is not personality and sometimes one has to play a true staccato or play with abandon to add a little spice. I don't believe MTT is entirely at fault here although one would think he'd have the skill and personality to make the orchestra understand that it doesn't matter if an apple is bright and shiny if the taste is bland. With the SFOs amazing skill it's really only a small step, perhaps it takes someone the likes of Dudamel to shake things up a bit.
7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
excellent recorded sound, good orchestral playing, poor interpretation,
By
This review is from: Mahler: Symphony No. 3 [Hybrid SACD] (Audio CD)
This is the worst Mahler 3rd I've listened to on record. The first three movements---the first half of the symphony, and the entirety of disc 1---are simply lethargic and boring as read here. Tilson Thomas has the San Francisco Symphony amble uncomprehendingly through them as though in a daze, in an unbroken monotone that offers almost no interpretive ebb and flow of tension and expression whatsoever. I can't begin to imagine what he was trying to get at. Every other reading I know of this music has so much more to say: pass this one by and try either of the New York Philharmonic Bernstein recordings, or Solti and Chicago, or Ozawa and Boston, or the L.A. Philharmonic with Salonen, or the Berlin Philharmonic with Abbado... virtually any reading other than this one.
The last third of this symphony is an adagio, and the music comes off better there, as though the score had slowed down to meet Tilson Thomas' languid pace. The Kindertotenlieder are likewise passable. But this is most decidedly a bad record. Look elsewhere.
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