Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (The Mahler Arrangements)

Robert Schumann (Composer), Riccardo Chailly (Conductor), Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra
• Conductor: Riccardo Chailly
• Composer: Robert Schumann
• Audio CD (February 13, 2007)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Decca
• ASIN: B000LC4TI6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,846 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Elegant, Mesmerizing Performances of Mahler's Edited Versions of Schumann's 2nd and 4th Symphonies, February 28, 2007

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John Kwok (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (The Mahler Arrangements) (Audio CD)

Distinguished composer and conductor Gustav Mahler was not alone among his contemporaries in "editing" works composed by earlier great composers such as Beethoven and Schumann (A classic case in point is the fate of most, if not all, of Bruckner's symphonies, which received major, unauthorized revisions during - and after - the composer's life.). Critic David Matthews observes in the liner notes for this recording that Mahler's revisions of Schumann's symphonies were essentially minor, remaining fateful to Schumann's artistic vision, without trying to impose Mahler's own personal stamp on these scores. Matthews gives a splendid overview of Mahler's corrections, pointing out exactly where changes were made in Schumann's original orchestrations of both scores.

After hearing this recording I couldn't help but utter "Wow". The venerable Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra has rarely sounded better - either live or in a recording - under the magnificient conducting of its new music director Riccardo Chailly. Clearly, in a short time under his inspired directorship, the orchestra is now regarded by many as one of Europe's five great orchestras. Mahler's edited versions of these two Schumann symphonies truly emphasize this orchestra's strengths; most notably a warm, lush, vibrant Central European tone for its string sections, and vibrant, precise intonation from both the winds and horns. Chailly and his new orchestra have done a fine job demonstrating why Mahler's edited versions of these two Schumann symphonies should be heard more often in concert performances (I might add that this is yet a good reason wny the Mahler-edited version of Schumann's 1st Symphony will be performed at Carnegie Hall during the orchestra's latest North American tour early next week.). Purists may cringe at some of the changes which Mahler has made to these scores, but I think most will agree that these are still splendid performances of Schumann's symphonies, coupled with elegant sound quality from Decca's sound engineers.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Schumann heard brightly through Mahler's ears, March 12, 2007

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Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (The Mahler Arrangements) (Audio CD)

Even after pioneering efforts in the Sixties by Leonard Bernstein, who set out to disprove the dusty claim that Schumann's symphonic orchestrations are awkward or even botched, the accusation kept cropping up. Then the authenticity movement helped restore the four symphonies to what Schumann originally intended. Now, by a quirk of taste, Chailly is reverting back to the old days of tampering with the score, not to diss the composer but to let us hear what another genius (and supreme orchestrator), Mahler, had to say.

What one hears immediately is that Mahler thinned out the many doublings of string lines, rendering them leaner and cleaner. In the process he allowed wind solos to emerge more clearly. After hearing a concert featuring the First "Spring" Sym., the NY Times reviewer commented that Mahler makes Schumann sound like early Beethoven. Well, not on this CD, but the opened-up texture is highly noticeable. You'll hear woodwind chords that used to be underwater and less 'fatness' in the orchestra's timbre. Call it Schumann in light of Mendelssohn.

Chailly has suddenly revitalized the dogged old Leipzig Gewandhaus, earning raves everywhere, and quite deservedly. The ensemble is sharp, alive, and constantly grabbing the listener's attention in these electric readings of Sym. 2 and 4, which are the best we've gotten in a decade. If you want to hear Mahelr's Schumann done in sparkling performances, this CD is highly recommended.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Breathtaking: the performance means as much as the score, June 11, 2007

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David Robinson (Oakland, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (The Mahler Arrangements) (Audio CD)

This is one of the most exciting new releases of classical music from 2007. None other than Gustav Mahler (who himself was known as much as a conductor as a composer in his day) neatly edited Schumann's rather muddy orchestrations and Chailly has carefully researched what should be labelled the "Mahler performing editions."

But it's not just the tightened-up orchestrations that make these performances breathtaking to listen to. Chailly whips along the usually stodgy Gewandhaus Orchestra and has beautiful phrasing. The horns burp and bark along with unbridled enthusiasm. Occasionally, the heavy punching on the emphases seems a bit like over-acting on the stage, but in the main part the result is successful.

Schumann definitely has his "longueurs" in concert performance with A B A structure that seems to be repeated once too often for the modern ear. But in listening to these (especially the 4th symphony) when the CD is over, the first thing you'll want to do is to play it again.

This release has the two unnamed symphonies (Numbers 2 and 4) and we eagerly await similar recordings of the Mahler editions of Number 1 ("The Spring Symphony") and Number 3 (the "Rhenish").

This CD belongs in every serious classical music collection.