CSO Resound - Mahler 1 SACD

And please pick-up copies of Mahler 1 by Kubelik, Horenstein, and Walter. What they lack in sonics are counterbalanced 10-fold by interpretation. Enjoy.

Haitink is a respected conductor, although I find his recorded Mahler and Bruckner to be overly thought-out and smooth to the point of removing all traces of life. Haitink has recorded as much Mahler as anyone, and the two performances I return to with frequency is #4. Ah, I wish his entire BPO cycle could sound as fresh as this #4, and Sylvia McNair is absolutely radiant and perfect for the part. The other one is a searing #5 from the Amsterdam live Christmas concerts - a hard to find box, but a cycle that trumps any of his other over-polished disasters.

I do like Haitink's Shostakovich. Really, a landmark set.

For sonics on modern recordings, I like Boulez' #1. An idiosyncratic performance , but it is awesome when Boulez 'let's er rip' with such a powerful orchestra. Too bad he rushes the beautiful Juliane Banse on the recording - he didn't in the live concert. Maybe he had another recording to make that day. I also like the Bernstein DG box as the most satisfying set on whole.

Err, sorry. Juliane Banse is on Boulez' Mahler 4. I must be making-up songs now. Anyway, Boulez tends to rush #1 in addition to #4.