Search - Gustav Mahler, Benjamin Zander, Philharmonia Orchestra :: Mahler: Symphony No. 3 - Benjamin Zander / Philharmonia Orchestra

Not as good as I expected.

David N. Loesch | Seattle, WA | 04/03/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I am a big fan of Benjamin Zander's Mahler. His 4th is the best I have ever heard, and the 5th, 6th and 9th are highly commendable. Zander's insights in his hour long lectures included with each symphony are worth the price of the package which is already a bargain. Thanks to Zander, after 30 years of wrestling with the 9th, I finally understand it. The 3rd, however, is a bit off the mark. It isn't by any means a bad performance, but there are better. My favorites are Bernstein with the New York Philharmonic on DGG and Riccardo Chailly with the Concertgebouw on Decca (a knockout performance by any standards.) I also recommend Bernstein or Michael Tilson-Thomas for the 1st and 6th and Bernstein or Claudio Abbado for the 7th."

A Triumph of the First Order!

Andrew M. Klein | Washington, DC USA | 12/03/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Another impassioned, revealing, and riviting Zander peformance of Mahler. Zander shows us just how the enormously complex parts of this great and very long symphony fit together and interact with each other. Other recordings (I think here of Bernstein and Chailly -- both of whom recorded performances that I also love), to my ear, do not do this. Zander clarifies what others blur. Magnificent throughout, Zander's power as a Mahler conductor is nowhere so evident as in the last three movements, played with increasing drama and tension from the contralto tragedy of the fourth movement through the oddly uplifting and promising children's and women's choruses of the fifth, concluding with the profoundly moving sixth, Mahler's first great Adagio. Here Zander made my hair stand on end -- not easy to do. A complete and utter triumph! Not to be missed."

Benjamin Zander's Mahler 3

David N. Loesch | 06/15/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This being my first experience with Benjamin Zander, I didn't know what to expect. I had also never heard a Mahler 3 before, so I went into this recording with absolutely no experience with the conductor or the music. However, the opening horn fanfare quickly quelled any other thoughts, and I was held by the throat for the next half-hour of the first disc. This truly is an inspired performance; Zander's close following of the score markings and Mahler's original intent go a long way toward a great musical experience. No other recording that I have listened to has come close to the grandeur and sweep of emotions that Zander's performance possessed. Compliments, also, to the Philharmonia Orchestra, whose brilliant playing clearly establishes them as a great Mahler orchestra. Also of interest are Zander's other Mahler recordings; interestingly, a recording exists with Zander conducting the New England Conservatory Youth Orchestra on Mahler's 5th, which rivals just about any professionally produced recording in terms of intensity and quality of playing. The recording can be downloaded from Zander's website, www.benjaminzander.com."