Search - Mahler Symphonies 1 & 8 (Symphony of a Thousand) / Klaus Tennstedt, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra on DVD

Yes, but . . .

B. Guerrero | 12/08/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Everyone says that Tennstedt was so much better live than in the studio. I don't really agree with that, especially in his latter years, where his tempi simply got slower and slower. If you happen to be an admirer of Celibidache's glacial Bruckner (I'm not), this DVD may very well tickle your fancy. But for me - in spite of the fact that the Chicago Symphony play superbly well - Tennstedt's late analog Mahler first goes farther in capturing the youthful freshness of the work (Tennstedt's very first Mahler recording). The live 8th here convinces me even less. Yes, everyone is terribly committed to what Tennstedt is doing. But that's the problem - who amongst these highly dedicated participates was going to tell Tennstedt that Mahler's compositions don't gain a thing by constantly stretching linking passages and harmonic cadence points, to a point where the music all but comes to a dead standstill? I found myself yelling at the screen, "oh, come off it! - just move on with it now". While Tennstedt's vision of the work is truly apocalyptic, Bernstein's Vienna Phil. DVD of the Mahler 8th from 1975 - which comes with a fine Mahler 7th as well- is much more celebratory in nature. So is Tennstedt's own studio recording on CD, which just got remastered and reissued on EMI's "Great Recordings Of The Century" series, coupled to his lively account of the fourth symphony (but not nearly as well recorded as his 8th). No complaints about Tennstedt's vocal soloists, who are all very good. But Kenneth Riegel sounded better in '75 (Bernstein) than he does here - a bit strained in the more taxing moments. I'm still giving this four stars because the sound and picture are quite good (I was tempted to make it three).



Unless you just have to hear how well the CSO can sustain the Mahler first at such slow tempi, I recommend giving this the slip and getting either, or both, the Deutsche Grammophon DVD of Bernstein/Vienna Phil. doing Mahler 7 & 8, and/or EMI's "GROC" remastering of Tennstedt's mid 80's studio recording of the 8th (coupled with the 4th, as mentioned above). All three M8's mentioned have plenty of organ."

Extraordinary!!

Denis | Portland, OR | 10/09/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These recordings are with two different orchestras (Mahler 1st with the Chicago Symphony and the 8th with the London Philharmonic). Tennstedt's live performances are much better than his studio versions of the same works, and it's wonderful to watch him coaxing what he wants from the players. Even though he conducts from the score rather than from memory, he always seems to be directly connected to the orchestra in an almost magical way. The sound is good in both performances, and there is a sense, on both occasions, of being present for something quite special. These are great performances. High recommended!

"

Excellent Mahler

Randall Tiedman | Cleveland | 01/05/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tennstedt is well thought of as a Mahler conductor and he doesnt disappoint here. Both performances deliver on a well produced disc. Suprisingly I find myself reaching for the recently released Haitink DVD's of him conducting Mahler 1&2 which is unusal in the sense that Tennstedt outranks him as a Mahler conductor yet I think I prefer Haitink. Both are worth having and are highly recommended."