 [Larger view] | Gustav Mahler, Otto Klemperer and more - Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
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 One Of The Great Ones | |
| Edith Eisler's headnote strikes me as a very fair and well-reasoned assessment. I feel this is one of the great accounts of "Das Lied." Ludwig is at her most musicianly, and Wunderlich's beautiful voice is yet another sad reminder of what was lost by his early death. I heard him live just once, in a 1966 " Magic Flute," where he was even better than in his studio recording with Bohm. Klemperer opts for some stately tempos, but in general I find him far more sympathetic here than was his Mahler norm. Is there a "definitive" recording? I don't feel that any one recording says it all in this extraordinary music. I grew up with the old Walter/Vienna recording with Kathleen Ferrier & Julius Patzak - the original London LPs still sound far sweeter and more natural than any of the later CD transfers. The problem there, for me, was the playing of the Vienna Philharmonic - the ensemble was at times distressingly poor. Walter's first one with Thorborg & Kullman was in some ways even better: both are preferable to the stereo version with Haefliger (very fine) and Mildred Miller (not so fine). If I had to pick just three recordings for Ye Olde Desert Island, I would probably opt for the following: 1. Ferrier & Set Svanholm with Walter and the NY Phil. (1948), which is available in that orchestra's 10-disc CD set "The Mahler Broadcasts." This was, along with Mitropoulos's searing Mahler 6th, the best item in that set. Ferrier is even better than in her Vienna account - and Svanholm did the best singing I have ever heard from him. 2. The live 1939 recording with the Amsterdam Concertgebouw (Mengelberg's orchestra), conducted by Carl Schuricht. Kerstin Thorborg was the alto, even better here than she was in 1936 with Walter. Carl Martin Ohman was a true Heldentenor - I think his is the most masterly tenor account of all. The sound is rather antiquarian but adequate - mine is on a Minerva CD. 3. The Horenstein was recorded in concert (1972) with the BBC Northern Symphony. It features Alfreda Hodgson and John Mitchinson. Both singers do a wonderful job, but the real star is Horenstein - his is the most eloquent exposition of the orchestral part I have ever heard. Late in life, Horenstein remarked that his greatest regret about dying was that he would never be able to hear "Das Lied von der Erde" again. This is a very special, tremendously moving account. It is the one stereo version that I would recommend without qualification. | |
 Deeply moving and inspired | |
| It is rare for everything to come together as it has on this performance. The interpretation from Klemperer shows him at his finest. The great Mahler pupil shows penetrating insight into the deepest depths of this score which seems to emerge in his hands as possibly Mahler's greatest work. The two inspired vocalists never once fail Klemperer in the realisation of his vision of the work. Wunderlich gives a performance of a lifetime but Ludwig rises to the occassion in the last 'movement'(this is after all a symphony is it not). This is a performance which is almost impossible to stop listening to so convincing and powerful is the musical argument being presented - even for the most jaded Mahlerians it comes across as a revelation. Not only that but as an original recording it is a tour de force for Walter Legge and his recording team, who put most contemporary recordings to utter shame - they just don't make them like that anymore. The huge soundstage, the wonderful front to back depth make many high-tech digital production seem artificial and shallow. And at last these new 24-bit EMI transfers have been able to do full justice to the sound quality dormant in the orginal tapes. | |
| One of THE best Mahler recordings ever! | |
| Everyone has their own opinion of which Mahler "Erde" is best. The Walter/Ferrier/Patzak/VPO is brilliant and I wouldn't want to be without it. It was my first exposure to "Erde" and recorded beautifuly in magnificent mono. Bernstein/Fischer-Dieskau/King/VPO is fabulous. If you prefer baritone to alto, this is definitely the best. Bernstein knows Mahler and this recording proves it. Both have been remastered in recent years and sound better than ever. I've heard many recordings of this moving work over the years but I find I keep coming back to Klemperer. The Klemperer recording is rich, broad and expansive. The remastered sound is fresh and clear. The VPO is marvelous. Klemperer balances the orchestral forces and the vocalists admirably. Wunderlich and Ludwig pour their soul into the libretto. The music envelopes the listener. This is a transcendant experience. A great recording of the century indeed. Mahler at his finest. Most highly recommended. |
