Search - Gustav Mahler, Otto Klemperer, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf :: Mahler: Symphony No. 2 / Klemperer, Philharmonia Orchestra

It is what it is....and it's wonderful!

DAVID A. FLETCHER | Richmond, Va United States | 06/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Klemperer afficianados adore everything the maestro laid his hands on. Those who don't stray much beyond respect will divide his output roughly between the "middle-aged Klemperer" and the "aging Klemperer" categories. The distinction seems to be that in the former, he was all piss and vinegar, while in the latter, he was like an aging grandfather clock that just kept slowing down. Young Otto kept things moving smartly, while old Otto just plodded. You get the idea.



This recording of Mahler's "Resurrection" symphony dates from late 1961 and early 1962, and here we encounter the "aging Klemperer," age 77, but....and it's a serious "but".... conducting the one piece of symphonic literature to which he publicly credited his most personal attachment. From 1905, when the 20 year old Klemperer conducted the offstage brass in a performance led by Oskar Fried (attended by Mahler and pronounced "very good")to 1907, when he created his own piano reduction of the score, the work was clearly in the forefront of his mind. Mahler himself aided Klemperer in attaining his first professional appointments, in Prague (1907) and Hamburg (1910).



Yet for all of the above, Klemperer was of mixed views concerning Mahler as an overall symphonist. Much of the Mahler canon he conducted either rarely or never at all. It was the "Resurrection" symphony, though, which Klemperer consistently programmed, recording it for Vox just ten years prior to the performance under discussion here. It was this hybrid of arch-Romanticism, drama, and religious/philosophical yearning that Klemperer remained devoted to for the entire length of his professional career. Perhaps it is this quality--devotion--that has magnetized listeners with this performance ever since its issue by EMI/Angel in 1963.



There is urgency from the very first bar. The pace is a gripping one--nothing "plodding" here. Attacks by the strings, from basses and cellos straight up to first violins, are hair-raising. Brass and winds shriek, bray, and proclaim their choruses and accents precisely as the score's instructions demand...and then some. Momentum is never abandoned--no fermata-as-smoking-break here! And yet it never feels rushed. Klemperer has indeed set a brisk pace, by contemporary performing standards (he clocks in at just over 19 minutes, with most recent outings averaging at around 22). It is this devotion to the drama...the urgency...that makes it so compelling.



The fireworks of the opening movement are soon held in stark contrast to the second movement's laendler-esque nostalgia, complete with the wonderfully executed string pizzicati, a subtle bit of performance theater when violins and violas adopt a horizontal strumming position a la mandolin. "Sehr gemaechlich" is Mahler's performing instruction, and leisurely--with a distinct Austrian accent--is indeed the operative term here. The push-pull of the rhythm is in evidence, but never dominant. Klemperer gets it right, without lathering on the schmaltz.



Mahler, Klemperer, and the orchestra then deftly switch gears once more, with the sardonic lilt of the third movement's portrait of St. Anthony preaching to the fish. The humor is pointedly presented, with verbal outbursts characterized by the solo winds, brass accents, and percussive punctuation...all while the swimming strings answering in blithe counterpoint. Tempo here is a bit slower than most of the competition, but it's never obtrusively so, given the prowess of the Philharmonia's colorful solo and section work. While truly in rondo/scherzo mode, Mahler doesn't set a driving pace here, and neither does Klemperer.



Movements 4 and 5, beginning with the intensely haunting "Urlicht," or primal light, also serve to re-introduce mezzo Hilde Roessl-Majdan, reprising her role in Klemperer's 1951 recording. She delivers her song of intensely determined hope with palpable conviction, setting the stage for the fireworks of the fifth movement's sequence of spiritual, emotional, and musical climaxes. And when they come....they COME! Shattering eruptions from all quarters are announced by offstage brass choirs, distantly placed so as to be sensed as much as heard, making the orchestral tuttis all the more compelling. Magic moments continue with the Wilhelm Pitz-led Philharmonia Chorus' subito entrance of "Aufersteh'n, ja aufersteh'n......" Vocal projection is beautifully concentrated and balanced, a quality maintained even in their fortissimo outbursts. Then, back to a whisper as Roessl-Majdan reappears, this time in the company of Elisabeth Schwarzkopf. Their duet is well-matched, with Schwarzkopf's honeyed tone soaring appropriately, tethered only by Roessl-Majdan's mezzo.



From here, momentum continues to build, with chorus and orchestra in fine balance, all the way to finely-wrought conclusion with the organ's entrance (a tribute to Walter Legge's legendary production values). From beginning to end, one is aware of the full range of dynamic contained in Mahler's visionary scoring, with the beefy Kingway Hall ambience ably tamed and clarified. Recording quality is remarkably good, given the age, with only a few instances of high-end thinness present in the upper-octave violins and slightly splashy cymbals. One comes away with an appreciation for Klemperer's obvious teamwork with Legge, as solos and sectional passagework make their presence known with undue spotlighting.



Is it, then, a near-perfect performance? To that, a short "yes," and a long "perhaps." One could quibble about the pitch variance in the closing pages, with bells, organ, and orchestra sometimes vying for primacy. Could the third movement scherzo be just a bit quicker? Possibly. These are questions which could be posed about almost any great recording of a major work as complexly scored and layered as Mahler's "Resurrection." What remains, though, is the sense of conviction and devotion that Klemperer brings to this work. Klemperer saw overwhelming greatness in this piece, and spent much of his life as an apostle for it. This is a performance and recording that will never leave the catalog, and no Mahler collection should be without it."

Ahhh the old school way of conducting

L. Johan Modée | 07/01/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not going to lie. When I first started getting into "classical" music a couple of years ago I was really excited by the recordings of Herbert Von Karajan. He always seemed so tight and in control and had something to say. Well after listening to many different interpretations of music and understanding its deeper meaning I've come to the conclusion that the conductors that many claim are grumpy, stodgy, old folky, etc. really care about the music and conveying it's message to the listener. Otto Klemperer was one of those conductors who I really didn't like at all. I almost sold my copy of his recording of Beethoven's Eroica on ebay. Luckily I didn't and gave it another try a few years later and now I'm selling my famed Karajan/Beethoven set because that is really the one that doesn't belong in my collection. It's completely emotionless and mechanical. You might be saying "what does Karajan and Beethoven have to do with Mahler's 2nd MAN??!! I just wanted to illustrate that virtuosity isn't everything. I love this recording made by Klemperer and have heard a few Mahler 2nd's including Bernstein from the '60's, Mehta/Vienna, and Klemperer's live recording with the Bavarian Symphony Orchestra which absolutely stinks in my opinion. It's like Klemperer wanted the performance to go like this one but had a horrible orchestra playing tricks with the poor old man. Bernstein's account was OK but seemed a little stodgy. Mehta seemed, to me, to treat the entire thing as a race to the finish line. In this recording Klemperer does some amazing things with tempo changes and according to some doesn't quite follow Mahler's score explicitly. Another great thing about this recording is the sound. It's warm and rich and the instruments are well placed. If you have to have only one Mahler #2 in your collection pick this one. It's cheap, easy to find, and conducted by a man who cared about the music. What else is needed?"

This is a beautiful performance

Craig Matteson | Ann Arbor, MI | 07/08/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The problem with pieces like Mahler's Second is that people become attached to specific versions and the payoffs each contain. You want the crescendo to get this big this fast or the ritardando to get exactly this slow and then pick up speed just like this.It is such a big work and is all about dramatic effect and passionate longing that it is certain that different composers are going to interpret it very differently.I think that Klemperer has made a very beautiful recording. It is certainly not the only one I would want in my collection, but I wouldn't mind handing it to someone to let them get to know this wonderful work. It is not the most soul aching version available, but it is majestic, powerful, and beautiful."