Search - Gustav Mahler, Recorded Sound, James Levine :: Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 9

A great live performance with a secondary orchestra

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 11/21/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Amazon hasn't communicated that this CD is part of a series of James Levine peformances "from the Munich years," as Oehms calls it. Levine's tenure with the Munich Phil. was odd, given that this ensemble is well below his standards. Rumor had it that he was trying to position himself to take over the Berlin Phil., except that the plum ultimately went to Simon Rattle. This 1999 Mahler Ninth is fascinating. It is the slowest on disc, with a first movement clocking in at 29 min. and a finale, unbelievably, at 32 min. (compared to 21 min. in Bruno Walter's classic 1938 performance from Vienna).



One mark of a great conductor is the ability to bring off preposterous ideas, and Levine does that here. He is so detailed and contorlled throughout that it's easy to adapt to his tempos. Unfortunatley, his much earlier Mahler Ninth on RCA (1979), which is almost as slow, features far better sound, not to mention exceptionally exciting virtuosity from the Philadelphia Orchestra. I would seek out that 2-CD set over this one, even though it's out of print. But if you only have access to the Oehms recording, it shows Levine off as an exceptional Mahlerian."

Very profound 9th

Scriabinmahler | UK | 03/29/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This Munich live recording is very impressive and profound which still deserve 5 stars, but Levine's earlier RCA version is far more powerful and probably the most profoundly moving performance on record. I hope RCA reissues all of his Mahler recordings made in 60-70s with CSO & Philadelphia O. Following is my review on that recording:



The RCA stereo recording made in 1979 by Levine/Philadelphia surpasses most of the great accounts of the 9th; the likes of Karajan & Bernstein's DG Live recording, Giulini, Horenstein and Bertini's profound accounts, Abbado's very powerful VPO version, and Solti and Maderna's equally powerful reading on DECCA and BBCL. Like Bernstein, Levine is not afraid of taking risks and every climax is massive with full impact. The last movement is the most profound and moving on record as far as I know. RCA's stereo sound is incredibly expanssive and sumptuous. Definitely the must-buy alongside his amazing account of 3rd."