Search - William Stone, Gustav Mahler, Fletcher Wolfe :: Mahler: Symphony No. 8 "Symphony of a Thousand"

Wow! Luv it! Great performance, Great sound!

Mark Zimmerman | Chicago, IL USA | 05/12/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"OK, OK, So, I've become a Mahler fanatic! Of the Symphony of a Thousand I have 6 versions: Chailly/Decca; Gielen/Hanssler; Sinopoli/ DG; Shaw/Telarc; Solti/Decca and Wit/Naxos. I would give all a 5 for performance, but for sound I would give all but the Solti a 5 as well. The Solti I would give a 4.5 to for sound. Hey, after all, it's a 1972 analog recording and to a slight degree the sound is beginning to show it's age. The one I turn to most frequently is this, the Shaw/Telarc. I can't say the performance is any better than the others, however the sound is up to Telarc's high standards and it's all on one disc. One thing I've noticed lately about older Telarc recordings is that although when new they may have retailed for around $17 or $18 many of their finest, including this CD, have been reduced to below $10. So, it's a real steal. Likewise the same is true of the Solti. Although the Wit/Naxos is on 2 cd's it too is at a low price. Of course, you have to remember that Naxos is a budget label, but note this: Wit and the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus always get first-class sound and give first-class performances of anything they do. As far as I know the Sinopoli, another favorite of mine on 2 discs is nla (I just did a search on Amazon and actually found it listed! It's not coupled with the adagio from the Symphony no. 10, run a search under: Mahler 8 Sinopoli). This leaves the Chailly/Decca & Gielen/Hanssler. Both are great performances although the Chailly has a fair amount of reverb in it, which many find slightly objectionable. I recommend it none-the-less. The Gielen has the advantage of Hanssler's fantastic sound plus a filler. Now, my feeling is that when this great symphony appears on 2 discs, Part 1 should be on the first disc and Part 2 on the second. So, where does the filler (Schonberg's "Jacob's Ladder") go? Right where it belongs, as the first track on disc 1. That way you can either listen to disc 1 all the way through, starting with the Schonberg and then the Mahler, or just listen to Part 1 and when over give a few minutes break as you put on disc 2 for the final section of Goethe's "Faust".



Next point: If you have no Mahler is your collection complete? Well, if you like the Romantic period of music then the answer is, "No". I probably have more music from this period of composition than any other (Baroque, Classical, etc.) and with my next order to Amazon I will have more Mahler than any other composer. Yes, I'm a fanatic! If you're new to Mahler I would say start with either the 1st or 4th. Both are good entry points into Mahler's sound world with the fourth probably being his sunniest work. If you want to enter whole hog and get all his symphonies in a box set I would go for the Gielen on Hanssler. ClassicsToday gives the complete boxed set their highest rating of 10/10 for sound and performance. I have Gielen's 1st, 2nd "Resurrection", 3rd, 7th, 8th "Symphony of a Thousand" and the Derek Cooke performing version of the 10th.



Back to the 8th. Part 1 is based on the Latin hymn, "Veni Creator Spiritus" while Part 2 is a musical representation of the final section of Goethe's Faust. Does it all work? Heck yes, Mahler's genius makes all the complexities sound like child's play. If you look at Amazon's price for the Shaw/Telarc it's now in the budget range, and is in fact the least expensive of all the versions I mention here at $9.98 for the single CD. Now, I do get some criticism for liking the Shaw. There are those who feel that Shaw just isn't as good a conductor of the more serious classical music as the other conductors I mention. To that I say, "Oh Fuddy Duddy!"



The only Mahler Symphony I have a problem with is the 6th, the "Tragic". I think that's because it does have a depressing or tragic feeling to it that I, being bipolar, just don't need! But, heck, shucky darns, that doesn't keep me from giving it a run through at least once a month if not more often (I'm determined to keep listening to it until I finally get the hang of it). In this house Mahler probably gets the old platter spinning more than any other composer.



Well, I'm just about finished here with the 8th. While enjoying this great work think of how difficult it must have been for the producers & engineers to record a work with such large scale forces: an orchestra of over 100, various choruses totaling almost 900 people (although most recordings scale it down a good deal, but manage to make it seem like there are still a huge number in the various choruses) plus 8 soloists. No matter how you look at it it's a monstrous undertaking. How did Gustav ever create this is beyond me.



To those of you, who like me, love classical music just think of how far the recording industry has come in giving us, what today is a tremendous classical output in all genres and forms just in the past 50 years. Think of all the composers who today are, among we lovers of good music, are household names, which 50 years ago were virtually unknown. I believe it was Vivaldi's Four Seasons that wasn't either known or recorded until the 1940's and just look here on Amazon to see a listing they have for this one work.



All I can say to Amazon is, "Keep up the good work and great service!" we appreciate it even if we don't say so.



Anyway, if this review in anyway seems a bit disjointed it's because I've been battling a bad headache since around 1pm yesterday and didn't get it under control until just a few hours ago (around 3am). Heck, I need some sleep!



Mark Zimmerman, the Bipolar Bear!



PS: Don't forget to check out the other recordings I mentioned earlier in the review. All are great!"

Great recording at a bargain price!

Allan R. Tavss | Miami, FL USA | 06/01/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While this is my first recording of "Mahler 8th" it is certainly a good way to start. I had heard other recordings of this symphony and was not impressed, but Shaw leading the Atlanta Symphony is certainly one to recommend. Great Sound too!"