Gustav Mahler Herbert von Karajan Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra - Mahler Symphony No9 Kindertotenlieder RckertLieder (14 tracks) +Album Reviews

If you like Karajan's Mahler, this one's a winner

Ray Barnes | Surrey, British Columbia Canada | 07/03/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Of all of Karajan's recordings of Mahler's symphonies, the ones that have received the highest praise have been his two accounts of the Ninth, and some feel the latter live performance of these is the better. I have not heard that recording, but can recommend the first one offered here. In comparison to his 5th, this account of the 9th is perhaps a bit more controlled and emotionally restrained, and Karajan's reading does not allow Mahler to, so to speak, wear his heart on his sleeve. It is close in tempo and interpretation to Haitink's famous record with the Concertgebouw, and has a slightly brisker tempo than Klemperer with the Philharmonia. It is not as aggressive or forward in sound as the Solti 9th, although a case could be made that Solti's approach comes closer to the letter of the score. In comparison to Barbirolli's wonderful performance with the BPO, the Karajan has better sound but not better playing - maybe not even as good in the woodwind in fact. The strings in both performance are very beautiful, and the superior sound gives the Karajan an advantage here. The inner movements could be a bit more incisive in rythmic pointing, but they still work well. The outer movements are slow but not excessively so. Christa Ludwig's performances of the Kindertotenlieder and 5 Ruckert Lieder, previously coupled with Karajan's reading of Mahler's 6th Symphony, remain outstanding, and she receives excellent support from the orchestra.The documentation is excellent too and at medium price this can be recommended. I still like the Solti 9th best of all (although the interpretation has not received unaminous praise), because the CSO's playing is in a class of its own, and is superbly recorded."

Better than the live recording!

Brian Lee | Baltimore, MD | 09/04/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I recently heard the live recording of the Ninth and believe that the former is superlative. There is no background noise, of course, and there is much more control and precision. This Ninth seems to embrace more wholly the spiritual content of the piece, and additionally, the lieder is included for half the price of the live recording. There is no reason why one would not select this over the other."

Great but could have been better.

jhorro | 06/19/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Karajan does a fine job conducting in all of his Mahler recordings (Oddly, he only recorded 4,5,6, and the 9th twice). In this recording, the strings are terrific, especially in the Adagio. The brass players shine throughout, especially the horns. The only reason why I gave this recording four stars is because of some sloppy playing by the auxiliary woodwind players (especially the contrabasson and e-flat clarinet). The recording sound is excellent, even better, in my opinion, than Karajan's live recording done a few years later. As for that live recording, I really don't understand what the big deal is. Karajan is much more expressive and the playing is somewhat better in this earlier recording. For those who love this music, this is a must."

Karajan at his best

jhorro | VA | 07/19/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the third version I have owned of this work - the others involved Solti in Chicago and Dohnanyi in Cleveland. Karajan is in his element with this music. Dohnanyi's version brought out the chamber qualities, which did not exist in Solti's extrovert account. Karajan knows how to shape the larger structures, without masking the detail. I became displeased with the other versions not long ago - they simply wore out. Even after a couple years, the Karajan is still an emotional experience for me. In the last movement, one can feel the pressure of the great Berlin orchestra trying to meet the vision of their conductor. And that sums up its success. I noticed that the amazon.com reviewer mentioned a missed entry in one of the movements. This will not stop you from finding pleasure in the reading and relishing the experience again and again."

Some flaws, but still a fairly good recording

William Bard | 06/14/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I got this from my local library yesterday to listen to, after hearing this piece before in two other recordings. I mostly picked this out for the interpretation, which was, in my opinion, very good. One of my favorite moments in the work can be heard starting at 11:39, the horn/triangle/string part that leads into the thundering percussion/trombone, also one of my favorite parts.

It is wonderfully played in the Bernstein - New York Phil. recording, though I prefer it much faster, and the Karajan interpretation is, therefore, a very welcome one. The only thing wrong with it is the playing. I have skimmed through the other reviews and so far no one else has picked up on it: Towards the end of the horn part, where the trombone comes in with the eighth notes (eighth note triplet?) to transition to the next phrase, it seems rushed - too rushed. I am honestly not sure whether the trombones are with the conductor and the horns are dragging, or the horns are with the conductor and the trombones are rushing, but either way - when the trombone phrase begins, and the horns have a held note for a few beats, before starting to ascend chromatically, there is a noticeable difference in timing between the horns and trombones, and it seems to me that, after several seconds, right before the trumpets enter in, the trombones attempt to slow down to meet the horns' (conductor's?) tempo. By the time the rest of the instruments come in, everything is going fine tempo-wise, once again. I immediately noticed this mess-up, and was naturally sad that it had to be made on one of what I believe to be the symphony's greatest moments. The rest of the symphony is played well, in general; in the third movement I am especially pleased by the excellent playing and good quality of the trumpets. I have not yet bought a study score for this work, and was delighted when my ears picked up on a couple new parts that I had never heard that clearly before. Overall this, is a good recording, though I will still choose Bernstein's any day over this, even if the horn/trombone section is not the speed that I like it at. Karajan does a good job conducting Mahler and this work in particular. It's only the playing that would hold me back from purchasing this."

Search - Gustav Mahler, Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra :: Mahler: Symphony No.9, Kindertotenlieder, Rückert-Lieder

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