Customer Reviews

Mahler: Symphony No. 4; Symphony No. 2

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My first encounter with this recording of the Mahler Second was in the listening library at Brandeis, and I'm sure the rest of the room thought I was insane. (I tend to get into the music a bit...) Marilyn Horne's "Urlicht" is enough reason to get this recording in the first place, but what a pity it would be to miss the other seventy-five minutes! As would be expected, Abbado leads the symphony in an appropriately operatic fashion. The first movement "Totenfeier" is appropriately martial and Germanic without being overly weighty. The contrasts between the percussive march and lyrical "Pastorale" sections are marked, but executed seamlessly. The second movement, often considered to be a good deal less exciting than those that surround it, leaves itself suspended slightly on every note so that you absolutely MUST hear what follows. The Scherzo is snarling at points, lyric at others, until it erupts in a violent finish. Enter Ms. Horne with the "Urlicht" or "First Light" from Des Knaben Wunderhorn. When I first listened to this, the tears kept streaming down my face well into the next movement, which alternates Armageddon/Resurrection like no other. Particularly effective are two parts: the long percussion crescendo before the c minor march, and the suspended "Last Trumpet" before the choir enters with the hymn "Aufersteh'n" of Klopstock. This is where Abbado's operatic conducting shines; the voices are always primary with exquisite orchestral coloring that never overtakes the soloists as is very possible in Mahler. The end is slow, exultant, and sublime.Lest you forget that this set also includes an entire other symphony! (the fourth) Von Stade's "Himmlisches Leben" is just as serene and pure as any boy soprano's, although it does lack the eerie quality that only a young boy can give to the part. The rest of the fourth is lustrous, including a very slow, very marvelous third movement and a haunting second.

Abbado is one of my favorite conductors. And Mahler is probably my favorite composer. But this truly is Mahler and Abbado at their best. The 2nd symphony is undescribably magnificant. Even though I've listened to it probably 30 or 40 times, the last movement of the 2nd still always gives me chills down my spine. And sometimes even a few tears to my eye. The building is so incredible is the last movement! The 4th symphony is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have ever heard. The sound of sleigh bells in the opening(and a violin solo in the first movement), to the beauty of the 3rd movement, to the heavenly singing of Frederica von Stade in the last movement to the soft, tranquill ending with the harp solo in the last few bars. And the cost is unbelievable. It is two for the price of one. I have seen recordings of just the 2nd for as much as 33 dollars. But with this, you get it and the 4th for half the price of just the 2nd! Beautifully recorded, great price, great music. Nothing can beat this.

Christmas is coming soon, people. This will be a great gift for any classical fan. Even if they haven't heard anything by Mahler before, you will want all his symphonies after you hear this. I strongly recommend this to any classical fan, Mahler fan(even if you have these symphonies already), or just for people who like great music.

After hearing most of Abbado's Mahler, early and late, I had formed the opinion that he steadily improved, moving from fussy caution to a real and deep understanding of Mahler's world. But just in case there were some early gems, I went back to this bargain two-fer of the Second and Fourth Syms. recorded in Chicago and Vienna. At present this packaging is the only way to acquire Abbado's earliest account of the Second; the Fourth can be had in his complete Mahler cycle.

Sym. #4: As you might expect from Vienna, the lyricism of the opening movement strikes with real poingnancy. Abbado's recent live remake with the Berlin Phil. bowled me over, but this VPO performance is just as winning. Some listeners may find the devil's fiddle too gentlemanly in the second movement, which Abbado plays rather fast and straight compared to, say, Bernstein. Mahler marks the slow movement "poco Adagio," but Abbado, like James Levine, opts for an all-out Adagio. Happily, the flexible phrasing of the incomparable Vienna strings enables a very slow melodic line to hold together ravishingly. Abbado seems to have a penchant for choosing off-beat soloists in the finale -- Renee Felming with her plush, mature soprano in his later recording and mezzo Frederica von Stade here. I don't think another mezzo has recorded the role. Von Stade sounds fresh and encompasses the notes well, but she does little to sound innocent and child-like. Her success depends entirely upon musical skill and beauty of tone. In all, an outstanding Fourth that has been overlooked.

Sym. #2: Solti was such an attack dog that he ruined my conception of the CSO, which was capable of amazing nuance under Reiner. They are reacquainted with their sensitive side here under Abbado. Unlike Solti's famed Mahler Seconds, the first movement isn't fierce and biting. If anything, Abbado seems a little soft-grained, but he shows great natural instincts in this music, bridging Mahler's dramatic contrasts very convincingly. The second movement minuet is delicate but alert -- too often this movement falls flat while the audience waits for the dam to burst in the last movement.

Post-Bernstein one has come to expect the Scherzo to contain a good deal of satiric edge. Abbado starts off with gunshot strokes of the timpani, but his approach to this movement remains on the effete side; it sounds like a continuation of the preceding classical mood. The best thing here is the playing of the woodwinds, which is full of character even at low temperature. Marilyn Horne defies her image as a leather-lung extrovert by singing "Urlicht" with grave sincerity. The floodgates are expected to open next, and they do, with phenomenal tutti playing from the brass section. DG's engineering thankfully doesn't land them in our laps, so we get to hear nice counterpoint from the woodwind soloists.

Mahler has managed the finale's unfolding apocalypse so skillfully that conductors are well advised not to get in his way, and Abbado doesn't. He sees it as his job to deliver the most perfect orchestral balance at a steady pace. It goes without saying that the CSO chorus outdoes almost every other on CD for sheer accuracy and beauty of tone. When another reviewer speaks of being brought to tears, I think the chorus's hushed reverence must have been the cause.

In the end, I was thrilled to discover two great performances that were lying right under my nose. I agree with the previous comment that this is Abbado's best (of three) Mahler Second, and the Fourth can stand comparison with any.

Elsewhere I have read glowling accounts singing the praises of Abbado's early Chicago Symphony Orchestra account of Mahler's 2nd "Resurrection" Symphony; indeed many find it more preferable to his recent live recording with the Vienna Philharmonic. This is certainly one of the best recordings I have heard of Mahler's 2nd, emphasizing the lyrical textures in Mahler's score. Abbado does a magnificient job leading the chorus and orchestra. As for the soloists, Lena Horne's singing is simply sublime. Abbado's early account with the Vienna Philharmonic of Mahler's 4th Symphony is nearly as fine, blessed with Frederica von Stade's elegant singing. Yet it suffers by comparison with more recent performances from the likes of Bernstein and Boulez, with regards to sound quality; as for Abbado himself, somehow I did not find this performance as electrifying as those from Bernstein or Boulez. Still I strongly recommend this CD because of Abbado's excellent version of Mahler's 2nd Symphony.

This is the finest performance of Mahler's Second Symphony available. Start with a staggeringly accurate and exciting performance by the Chicago Symphony, coupled with Abbado's sincere and soulful interpretation, add DG's excellent recording and mastering, and you've got a performance that never fails to deliver. Topping it off, Marilyn Horne sings the fourth movement better than anyone. I always walk away from this peformance feeling that I've experienced Mahler's Second Symphony, not Mahler's Second Symphony through the eyes (and the ego!) of Conductor X.

In a market crowded with decades of recordings of the Mahler Second, Abbado's stunning performance with the CSO is in every way one of the greatest, right up there with the legendary recordings of Klemperer, Walter, Barbirolli, and Bernstein.

What sets Abbado's performance apart from all the rest is a fiercely noble spirit, evident in his unique elegiac soaring treatment of the ascending themes, lyrical content, and pastoral textures. Where others treat these almost as wistful afterthoughts on the way to the more obviously exciting passages, Abbado captures and establishes the spirit of the hero, in a heart rending fashion that makes the explosive tragedy and thunder all the more devastating. This is a passionate and dramatic read, with purpose. Abbado's big moments are every bit as powerful and monumental as Bernstein's, but without exaggeration; an epic voyage on a huge canvass with a real feeling of journey. The sound is deep, rich, and massive. A truly special "Resurrection", and one of Abbado's very finest.

Abbado's Mahler Fourth with Vienna is also very good. Not the pristine dreamlike beauty of Szell, the joy of Mengelberg, or the incisive take of Horenstein, but a robust and alive interpretation full of feeling and outstanding detail. The gorgeous third movement merits special attention. It absolutely sings.

I've heard dozens of Mahler Seconds; this remains my favorite. It's not as majestic as one of Klemperer's performances, not as unleased as one of Bernstein's or Solti's. But it is powerful; Abbado brings out the Chicago brass more convincingly than Solti or Barenboim ever did. Another way of phrasing this is that Abbado conducts the Chicago as well as Reiner, which is high praise indeed. Finally, Marilyn Horne reminds us why for many she was the contralto of the century.

Abbado conducted the Boston Symphony Orchestra in this work during the 1978-1979 series. This concert was a peak experience, perhaps the best concert the BSO has given us since I began attending in 1967. If the BSO ever releases it, snap it up; it adds the drama of a live performance to Abbado's extraordinary take on this symphony.

The other two reviewers here give high praise to this recording. If its the only version of these two works you have heard I can understand why, but having heard numerous versions of these works both recorded and live I must say that these renditions are not at the level I am used to. One would think that with the Chicago Symphony at his disposal Abbado would let loose a little more, but instead of a blazing interpretation we get a rather tame, definetly non-Mahlerian piece of hash. Abbado never really lets the brass shine the way they could and the recording quality is sub-par for DG. As for the recording of the fourth symphony with the Vienna Philharmonic, I was even more dissapointed than with the Ressurection symphony. Very dull sounding and lacking a lot of character found in other renditions. All in all not an invalid interpretation of these two works, but you can certainly do A LOT better than this.

A prior reviewer states "Lena Horne's singing is simply sublime."

True, indeed.

However, regarding this particular recording, would you care to rethink that assessment?