Let me start with the Klemperer Mahler 9: first thing I noticed was how "roomy" and warm the recording is--the orchestra can breathe!--and it pays big dividends during the more terse stretches in the 1st Mov't. Moreover, Klemperer's 1st mov't really hangs together than any I've heard, which includes Karajan, Guilini, Levine, Chailly and Haitink off the top of my head.
Klemperer's 3rd mov't is indeed slow, (anyone who thinks Karajan can't whip up a storm should compare), and the 4th is aptly moving. The only disappointment is that the woodwinds get a little out of sync in the final quiet interlude (rocking harp minor 3rds) before the big finale of the 4th mov't. Not a deal breaker though.
Really enjoyed Kubelik's Mahler 3rd which some say is the crown jewel in the set. What lively winds and "tart" playing, but plenty of glow still. I don't think my mind wandered throughout the whole thing.
K's Mahler 7th blew my mind. I like portions of this work, esp. the "moonlit" stretch buried in the first mov't. Sadly Kubelik doesn't nurture the passage very much but the rest of the symphony--again, very tart playing--really clicked. The conductor makes the piece sound incredibly "modern," but very lightly textured which pays big dividends when it comes to surviving the final mov't. Now when I go back to Levine or Sinopoli they sound so trudging.
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Topic - Finally getting around Kubelik's Mahler...and the Klemperer 9th - jdaniel@jps.net 20:09:06 05/15/12 (14)
- Food for thought. - Sigmund 18:01:58 05/17/12 (0)
- Kubelik's Mahler - TGR 21:13:44 05/16/12 (4)
- Really good to hear about 3rD and 7th, those are the ones I read that were standouts. nt - jdaniel@jps.net 00:29:50 05/17/12 (3)
- RE: Really good to hear about 3rD and 7th, those are the ones I read that were standouts. nt - TGR 08:27:04 05/17/12 (2)
- RE: Really good to hear about 3rD and 7th, those are the ones I read that were standouts. nt - ahendler 14:47:25 05/17/12 (1)
- I like Bychkov a lot - but I still haven't heard that Mahler 3rd - I do intend to get it [nt] - Chris from Lafayette 15:38:40 05/17/12 (0)
- I'm generally lukewarm about Kubelik - jult52 14:49:56 05/16/12 (5)
- Nagano's Mahler 3 is not on Telarc - pbarach 12:23:49 05/17/12 (3)
- That Nagano Mahler 3 has been reissued - jult52 12:32:18 05/17/12 (2)
- Chris is right. Not Telarc... - pbarach 13:51:54 05/17/12 (0)
- Sure you don't mean Teldec rather than Telarc? [nt] - Chris from Lafayette 12:44:33 05/17/12 (0)
- I can see how the "expedience" could turn people off, but my problem is... - jdaniel@jps.net 00:31:17 05/17/12 (0)
- FYI on the Klemperer - Thornhill 07:03:35 05/16/12 (0)
- I've got to get my copy of the Kubelik set out again and re-listen - Chris from Lafayette 21:19:20 05/15/12 (0)