Last night, after a month-long burnout of all things Mahler, I decided it was time once again to hear his 2nd Symphony.

Oh.
My.
Gosh.

I consider this "Resurrection" 2nd Symphony to be the best piece of music ever imagined. If you haven't heard it yet, RUN out to a record store and get it. By the time it's over, you'll be completely broken down in tears, sweating from exertion, and paralyzed with rapture.

For those of you who haven't heard it yet, Mahler's 2nd is basically the 19th-century equivalent of a film score - a programmatic symphony. The first movement, "Todtenfeier" ("Funeral Rites") describes the powerful burial of a hero (Mahler said it's the protagonist of his programmatic first symphony).
The second is an absolutely ecstatic remembrance of the hero’s life, containing some of the composer’s most ingenious devices – absolutely brilliant.
The third, originally my favorite movement, expands upon the second, conveying a brilliantly sarcastic description of life and its banalities, finally climaxing in an absolutely agonized cry of anguish.
The fourth answers all the questions posed in the third with a simple, gorgeous alto solo.

Finally, the fifth movement presents a highly programmatic description of the Apocalypse, including a terrifying vision of the Last Judgment, and final salvation for ALL, exemplified by a huge chorus and pipe organ – it runs over 30 minutes total.

You HAVE to get one of the Otto Klemperer recordings on EMI to fully experience the work – he captures the heroism and mysticism better than any other conductor. The best version can be found for less than $10 on one 80-minute disc.

Finally, to fully understand the symphony, purchase both the miniature score (available from Dover for $5) and Constatin Floros’ book “Gustav Mahler: The Symphonies,” which presents the entire program of the symphony (including a literal representation of everything that happens in the fifth movement.)

I’ve been contemplating doing a full analysis of all of Mahler’s symphonies at my website, beginning with the Second (http://scoresheet.tripod.com/). First, however, I have to finish reviewing a rather large pile of soundtracks, so it’ll probably be the end of the year before I finish it. It would contain a lengthy description of the entire work, along with the complete program.

I’ve been having a Mahlerthon all day, playing all of his works. For those of you who don’t have them, all of his 11 symphonies are absolutely required for all film score fans:

Symphony #1 “Titan:” extravagant early work that contains a rapturous song of nature in the first movement, a scherzo for the second, a gloomy funeral march for the third, and a fiery 20-minute conclusion.

Symphony #2 “Resurrection”: get it. get it now.

Symphony #3: a work in six movements, it begins with the ecstatic yet banal arrival of summer and gradually progresses through six stages of existence, finally climaxing with a movement entitled “What Love Tells Me.” It’s the longest symphony ever composed, at 100 minutes.

Symphony #4: almost a chamber work, this exists almost without a program. It seems almost like a more subdued version of the Second’s third movement.

Symphony #5: Mahler’s more mature period begins here. It has five movements in three parts, beginning with an epic funeral march, followed by an even more extravagant update on these themes, followed by a devilish scherzo, followed by the famous Adagietto movement, and culminating in a major-key Rondo.

Symphony #6: Probably my favorite of his symphonies. He presents a bleak portrait of a person’s life, which almost reaches success and greatness, only to be crushed mercilessly. This may not make much sense, but check it out anyway!

Symphony #7: another of my favorites, this provides a five-movement cyclical description of Night, beginning with a dark march for sunset, segueing into a calm nocturnal walk, exemplifying midnight with a nightmarish scherzo, describing the early morning with another calm Nachtmusik, and culminating in an ecstatic Rondo, signifying daybreak. Get it now!

Symphony #8 “Symphony of a Thousand”: got its name from its required instrumentation: huge orchestra, mandolin, piano, organ, harmonium, 2 mixed choirs, a children’s choir, and soloists. The number of performers at its premier was well over 1000. ‘Nuff said. Get the Solti version.

Das Lied von der Erde: actually symphony #9, this is a depressing song cycle of Chinese poetry. Absolutely sublime music, however.

Symphony #9: Mahler accepts death. Elegy in four movements. Heartbreaking.

Symphony #10: Unfinished. This actually hints at atonality and the 12-tone composing method. It conveys another resigned acceptance of death. Get one of the Deryck Cooke reconstructions.

Whew! Sorry for the long post, but I had to get this off my chest.

Here's the amazon.com listing for it.

It's a 1963 studio performance that has had some great remastering - it sounded awesome on my new surround sound system.

Performance by the Philharmonia isn't completely perfect, but it adds some magnificent humanity to the proceedings.

CD# is CDM 7 69662 2.

And the cover art is HORRIBLE!

Oh, and another note about Mahler 7: the only performance that gets the composer's point across IMHO is Bernstein's on Sony Classical. Other performances can make it seem to be a deeply flawed work.

It's a hot and cold recording:
1. The choir is recessed and is not at the forefront like they should be

2. On the other hand, the 4th movement, with the contralto solo is not to be missed.

I have the Robert Shaw version of the 8th, and I think, while a tad reserved as was usual for Shaw, it is still a knockout. As is to be expected the choral work is phenomenal. The 8th features the best orchestral climaxes I have ever heard. love the very end of the Faust section.

As far as the 10th, I will also recommend Remo Mazzetti's versions, one of which is on RCA, conduicted by Leonard Slatkin. A 2CD set, with the first disc explaining the various versions of the symphony, from Cooke to Carpenter. Some people have problems with the performance, though. I don't. wonderful music.

Personally, I don't think this is off-topic. One must understand the roots of film music, dating back to AT LEAST Hector Berlioz, Liszt and Mendelssohn (as far as strictly programmatic music is concerned, anyway).

I agree with Andrew on the Klemperer recording, it is very fine. For anybody wanting to check out the world of Mahler in a little more detail, regular rec.music.classical poster Tony Duggan has put together a wonderful survey of Mahler's symphonies and song cycles. Naturally, I don't agree with Tony 100% on every single evaluation he makes (I rank Salonen's 3rd much higher than he does, for example), but it is an educated and well written account of some of the available Mahler recordings. You'll find it here:

Gustav Mahler Survey

Check it out, it is a well done site and certainly a good place to start when it comes to the music of Gustav Mahler.

NP: Johannes Brahms Hungarian Dances
Budapest Festival Orchestra/Fischer (Philips)

P.S. Just pray you don't get hooked on Bruckner. You will be trapped in front of your speakers forever.

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Originally posted by mgh:
P.S. Just pray you don't get hooked on Bruckner. You will be trapped in front of your speakers forever.

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Hehehe. I am!

Solti still gets the trophy for M8 in my book. He was hit-and-miss for most of the other symphonies, but his extravagance was precisely what the Eighth calls for. His recording of the 2nd w/ the CSO is also thrilling, in a Die Walkuere sort of way.

Nicolai:
I'm working on building my collection - I think that any Mahler collection can be REASONABLY complete at only four recordings per work ... the complete Bernstein cycle on Sony Classical (throw in his DG remake if you have extra cash - that striking photo edit of Bernstein standing across from Mahler is almost worth it by itself), Solti on Decca (even though his conducting is a bit one-sided, a lot of it can be thrilling), Klemperer, and Bruno Walter. This is neglecting MANY other great recordings, though.

That is quite true about his symphonies being personal - hearing something like the Sixth forces one to investigate the composer's life. (Incidentally, wasn't he psychoanalyzed by Freud? A report on this would be an interesting read.) I think this applies more to the fifth symphony and beyond than the more programmatic early works.

I love the way he interpolates songs from Des Knaben Wunderhorn, Klagende Lied, and Songs of a Wayfarer in these early symphonies. The full Wunderhorn song cycle is great!

Have you read Bernstein's essay "Mahler: His Time Has Come"? It really shows Bernstein to be almost a modern reincarnation of Mahler - it's quite moving. Has this been published on the Internet anywhere?

Mahler's 6th is a powerhouse work. First time I heard the first movement all the way through I was blown away. Still am. Boulez' recording on DG is the one for me (though I can't see how it tops Bernstein, which I haven't heard yet).

and Mahler was seen by Siggy "That Sick Phuck" Freud*.

try the Bruckner 9, on CBS, conducted by Bruno Walter.

*quote from Analyze This

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Originally posted by Andrew Drannon:
The thing about Bruckner that has kept me away is that it seems his symphonies each attempt to explain the same ideas musically, whereas Mahler's vary according to work. I plan to give him several more tries, though.

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Well, his works may not be too varied, but as long as it is good, I think a composer doesn't necessarily need to have revolutionary new ideas for each of his work. It's not like all Bruckner works are the same. [ ]. I don't know the recording of his 9th JJH mentioned, but I'd like to recommend the version by Kurt Eichhorn and the Bruckner Orchester Linz once again. Impressive performance, very good sound, and a reconstructed 4th movement. While the whole symphony is quite shocking (Bruckner clearly knew his life was coming to an end), this last movement is the most radical. Bruckner dedicated "to the good Lord", but it's not like the music is all happiness and glory.

As for Solti, I have a wonderful recording of Dvorak's 9th conducted by him and performed by the Chicago Symphony.

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Originally posted by Marian Schedenig:

Well, his works may not be too varied, but as long as it is good, I think a composer doesn't necessarily need to have revolutionary new ideas for each of his work.

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Quite right...

I'll try Bruckner 9.

Oh, and JJH, re Mahler 6:
I remember the first few times I heard this I was completely hooked on the first movement - it was and still is mindblowing. However, I think that the real message of the work lies in the fourth movement - a terrifyingly dark mural of a person's life (probably Mahler's). I actually got greater appreciation for the work through thinking of it in more programmatic terms (Mahler would be appalled, I'm sure ) The finale's bleak epicism (whoa, new word) is completely unrivaled by any other symphony, and, as a website stated, it transformed Mahler from the last great symphonist of the 19th century into the first (and still greatest) symphonist of the 20th.

I tend to think of Mahler's symphonies as programmatic works, in that they ALL seem like journeys, whether imagined in Mahler's mind, or something meant to be more or less autobiographical.

NP -- THe Flim-Flam Man

NP: CE3K

[Message edited by mgh on 09-19-2000]

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Originally posted by mgh:
[B]JJH, in a way all of Bruckner's symphonies do sound the same. And yet they are all different.
To me they are all mediations--probably about God. And each is different because the vantage point of time changes with each one.

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Agreed!

Laurence, it's interesting: #7 is widely considered Bruckner's most popular symphony, but it never had THAT much impact on me. Don't get me wrong, I love it (I love everything I've heard by Bruckner), but my favourites are #4, #6, #8 and #9.

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Originally posted by Marian Schedenig:

Oh, and Andrew: Mahler's 6th is indeed autobiographical. The 3 (it's three, right?) hammer strokes represent 3 blows of destiny in Mahler's life at that time. Admittedly, I'm not very familiar with his biography, but I think one was the death of one of his children?

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Actually, he composed this symphony before any of these things happened to him - Alma Mahler is the one who started this rumor, even though it's untrue.

Reportedly the blows of fate from the hammer signified the death of his daughter, his firing from his conducting job, and the diagnosis of his fatal heart condition, all of which occured directly after composition of the Eighth.

Mahler was quite superstitious and eventually removed the third and final hammer blow from the published edition of the score, replacing it with a generic tam-tam strike (there were originally something like five hammer blows, but he rightly found them to weight down the movement - it would have seemed to be nothing more than a percussion gimmick). A few performances have actually reinstated this recently, however. I think it has much more power with the usual 2.

NP: Gustav Mahler: Symphony #6 (Berlin Philharmonic, Karajan) - 4th movement, too!

The Adagios of the last 3 symphonies are not to be missed.
They are a monument to the man's faith in God, something rare in today's cynical, atheistic society.

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About 6 minutes in? First movement?[b]

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I answer thus:

about 6 minutes into the Adagio movement. sorry for the confusion.

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Originally posted by Andrew Drannon:

That is quite true about his symphonies being personal - hearing something like the Sixth forces one to investigate the composer's life. (Incidentally, wasn't he psychoanalyzed by Freud? A report on this would be an interesting read.)

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That would be an exageration. Mahler visited Freud on August of 1910, shortly before his death. It was mostly because he was looking for advice concerning his relationship with Alma (who was having an affair with another man at the time). When Freud himself recalled this meeting later he said about their "session":

"It was as if one would dig one deep long shaft through an enigmatic mine."

NP: Roy Webb Cat People
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra/Stromberg
(Marco Polo)

The third is my favorite, thus far, although this past spring, I sang with the Dallas Symphony Chorus in a performance of the Symphony No. 8 -- what a blast! It allowed me to get to know that piece inside and out, and we gave four performances. Each night, the audience was completely blown away. (Incidentally, our performance was recorded by Delos and will be released next year. It should be great.)

I'll end with two quotes I've read:

Regarding Mahler -- "In each of his symphonies, he destroys and then completely reconstructs the world."

Regarding Bruckner -- "Listening to a Bruckner symphony is like walking around a cathedral for 45 minutes and admiring it from all sides."

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Originally posted by Jonathan:
Regarding Bruckner -- "Listening to a Bruckner symphony is like walking around a cathedral for 45 minutes and admiring it from all sides."

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If it's a short Bruckner symphony.

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<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=1 face=arial>quote:</font><HR size=1>Originally posted by Jonathan:
Well, well, well . . . at last I discover that there are other Mahler and Bruckner fans among the MovieMusic.com crowd. About six months ago I posted a message about the Third Symphony by Mahler and it was virtually ignored. I assumed I was alone in my admiration.
<HR size=1></BLOCKQUOTE>

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I've been obsessed with this work for the past few days, but I still find it to be somewhat more problematic than most of his other works. The sprawling first movement and riveting third movement are my favorites, although it's been a while since I've heard the second half - I'll listen to that tonight.

Symphony #8 was completely overwhelming the first time I heard it - I didn't return to it for a few months. After buying the Solti version, however, the work opened up to me and I finally witnessed its true genius, especially the first movement.

BTW, great quotes.

NP: I dunno, let's start either Mahler 6 or Das Lied von der Erde

[Message edited by Andrew Drannon on 09-20-2000]

I bet the sound was amazing in Meyerson!

I'll be buying that Delos CD. Incidentally, I have the DSO recording of Shostakovich's 8th, also on Delos. what a knockout performance.

I am making it my life mission to buy every recording of his 9th, which currently my absolute favorite work. The first movement's sense of hopelessness and despair leading to peaceful resignation just breaks my heart every time I listen to it. Especially Bernstein's early recording.

Tennstedt can also be interesting, the recording of the 6th is perhaps one of the highlights of that cycle.

Personal Favorites:

#1--Andrew Litton, cond. (Virgin)
Bruno Walter, cond. (Sony)
#2--Gilbert Kaplan, cond. (MCA)
Bruno Walter, cond. (Sony)
#3--Jascha Horenstein, cond. (Unikorn-K)
#4--Szell, cond. (Sony)--simply the best!
#5--Abbado (DG)--but haven't settled yet here
#6--Szell (Sony)
#7--Bernstein (DG)
#8--Bernstein (DG)
#9--Pesek (Virgin)
#10--Slatkin, (RCA/BMG)

For Brucknerians...

A Horenstein recording of the 5th floats around once in a while (with BBC Symphony). Also, there is a great performance of the 7th with Skrowaczewski on the Arte Nova label (about $5 in most places), and George Tintner's recording for Naxos are supposed to be wonderful (I only have #s 1 & 2), there could not be an easier way to discover this music!

mostly the Adagietto, which, IIRC, he takes pretyt fast. I prefer Karajan's slow and contemplative approach to this particular movement.