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Track Listings
| 1. I. Allegro Maestoso |
| 2. II. Andante moderato |
| 3. III. In ruhig fliessender Bewegung |
| 4. IV. Urlicht. Sehr feierlich, aber schlicht |
| 5. V. Im Tempo des Scherzos. Wild herausfahrend |
| 6. Wieder sehr breit |
| 7. Ritardando...Maestoso |
| 8. Wieder zurückaltend |
| 9. Langsam. Misterioso |
| 10. Etwas bewegter |
| 11. Mit Aufschwung aber nicht eilen |
Product Description
CD Composer: Gustav Mahler / Conductor: Otto Klemperer / Orchestra: Philharmonia Orchestra
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
45 of 47 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Audio CD
This is possibly the most outstanding Mahler recording of its generation. Iron control is self evident throughout but never more than in the last movement which builds to its massive climax with a total sense of inevitability that is never allowed to degenerate into brashness. The playing and singing could scarely be bettered and the recording is clear and uncongested in the best Walter Legge tradition.
25 of 26 people found the following review helpful
By Colin Fortune
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Audio CD
If Amazon would let me give this 7 stars then I would! Even though the recording is over 40 years old it still sounds well. Klemperer brings an amazing sense of occasion to this performance - it's like all you would expect a "live" performance to be and then a bit more on top.
First movement: Stern, weighty and FAST, building to a mighty central climax. Every bit of the musical form fits beautifully into a superbly thought-out whole. This is the "funeral march of a corpse that is angry about dying" par excellence. The particular genius of Klemperer is to get the more reflective and gentle sections of the movement to mesh with the drama in a wonderfully seamless way.
Second Movement: A lovely "old-fashioned" minuet with finely placed fugato trio sections. The Philharmonia strings are burnished and glowing and the correct layout of the orchestra, with first and second violins placed left and right, ensures the greatest clarity in the part writing. Truly lovely and a much-needed relaxation after the storms of the First Part. [Note, Mahler suggested that there should be a good pause between Movement 1 and the rest of the symphony - part 2. Even though this is on one disc only I really recommend listening to the work like this, so that the First Part sinks in, particularly in this performance. The great advantage of the single disc format is that all of Part Two plays continuously - though this is also achieved in other two discs sets that place the First Movement on disc 1 and the rest on Disc 2.]
Third Movement: This is perhaps the most ironical sounding "Anthony of Padua Preaches to the Fish" Scherzo on record, perfectly paced and inflected with black humour in abundance. Superb!
...As is the "Urlicht" Fourth Movement.... Read more ›
First movement: Stern, weighty and FAST, building to a mighty central climax. Every bit of the musical form fits beautifully into a superbly thought-out whole. This is the "funeral march of a corpse that is angry about dying" par excellence. The particular genius of Klemperer is to get the more reflective and gentle sections of the movement to mesh with the drama in a wonderfully seamless way.
Second Movement: A lovely "old-fashioned" minuet with finely placed fugato trio sections. The Philharmonia strings are burnished and glowing and the correct layout of the orchestra, with first and second violins placed left and right, ensures the greatest clarity in the part writing. Truly lovely and a much-needed relaxation after the storms of the First Part. [Note, Mahler suggested that there should be a good pause between Movement 1 and the rest of the symphony - part 2. Even though this is on one disc only I really recommend listening to the work like this, so that the First Part sinks in, particularly in this performance. The great advantage of the single disc format is that all of Part Two plays continuously - though this is also achieved in other two discs sets that place the First Movement on disc 1 and the rest on Disc 2.]
Third Movement: This is perhaps the most ironical sounding "Anthony of Padua Preaches to the Fish" Scherzo on record, perfectly paced and inflected with black humour in abundance. Superb!
...As is the "Urlicht" Fourth Movement.... Read more ›
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Bryan Magee in Confessions of a Philosopher confesses that Mahler, even after listening to the esteemed versions by Walter, meant nothing to him. It was just "one meaningless phrase followed by another... incoherent." Then he heard Klemperer and, "it was as if someone had fitted my brain with an unscrambler: the phrases had shape and point, and were piercingly expressive, each relating with absolute rightness to what came before and after. Everything fitted together, the music cohered, and was amazingly beautiful..."
I wonder if this was the performance he listened to? Because I had exactly the same experience on listening to this recording! After suffering through Kletzke 1 and Szell 6 I also thought of Mahler as "meaningless" and "incoherent". But this performance, and Szell's Mahler: Symphony No. 4 were the counter-argument, the unscramblers, for me. Symphonies as meaningful and beautiful as any in classical music.
I wonder if this was the performance he listened to? Because I had exactly the same experience on listening to this recording! After suffering through Kletzke 1 and Szell 6 I also thought of Mahler as "meaningless" and "incoherent". But this performance, and Szell's Mahler: Symphony No. 4 were the counter-argument, the unscramblers, for me. Symphonies as meaningful and beautiful as any in classical music.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I know that some people don't like the tempi, thinks that the orchestra is below par etc. But honestly - I can't hear that.
Of course I hear slower tempi than many "modern" recording, but it's tempi making perfect sense. (Also remember that Klemperer actually assisted Mahler when Mahler conducted this symphony.) Maybe some moderna conductors are just not able to let a slower tempo live?
This is a recording where every note has a consequence in what follows. The symphony is played as a whole, not separated parts that should be as "beautiful" as possible.
The soloists and the chorus are at their very best. There is attack, dynamics, clarity.
This is my definitive recording of this sublime music.
Of course I hear slower tempi than many "modern" recording, but it's tempi making perfect sense. (Also remember that Klemperer actually assisted Mahler when Mahler conducted this symphony.) Maybe some moderna conductors are just not able to let a slower tempo live?
This is a recording where every note has a consequence in what follows. The symphony is played as a whole, not separated parts that should be as "beautiful" as possible.
The soloists and the chorus are at their very best. There is attack, dynamics, clarity.
This is my definitive recording of this sublime music.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Scriabinmahler
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Audio CD
This is the very first CD of Resurrection Symphony I bought years ago, recommended by a Penguin Guide review and it has served me as a touchstone recording against which other recordings were tested. And very few matched it ever since! The strength of Klemperer's reading lies in the way the conductor never loses overall perspective of the entire symphony, while achieving maximum impact in every climax and every crucial moment. Even moments of serene silence are perfectly judged in the context of the whole. As a result, there is a sense of inevitability in the way the music culminates in the massive final apotheosis that sounds all the more transcendent, not because of the volume of the sound, but because of all that went before, starting from the towring account of the first movement. Beautifully remastered with enhanced clarity.
If you'd like to know other great recordings of 2nd, following are the ones that match Klemperer's studio recording;
Klemper's live version (more broadly paced, yet very powerful & gripping account)Mahler: Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"
Stokowski's Gigantic, apocalyptic, megalo-maniac Prom Live (surprisingly well recorded, )Mahler: Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"
Bruno Walter's eloquent and monumental recording, coupled with the classic recording of 1st Mahler - Symphonies Nos 1 & 2
Haitink's uncompromisingly crafted account
Solti's two very powerful recordings 1.Mahler: Symphony No.22.Mahler: Symphony No.2 - "Resurrection"
Kubelik & Bertini's beaitifully crafted account MAHLER Symphonies 1-10 Rafael Kubelik & Mahler: Symphonies 1-10; Das Lied von der Erde [Box Set] Read more ›
If you'd like to know other great recordings of 2nd, following are the ones that match Klemperer's studio recording;
Klemper's live version (more broadly paced, yet very powerful & gripping account)Mahler: Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"
Stokowski's Gigantic, apocalyptic, megalo-maniac Prom Live (surprisingly well recorded, )Mahler: Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"
Bruno Walter's eloquent and monumental recording, coupled with the classic recording of 1st Mahler - Symphonies Nos 1 & 2
Haitink's uncompromisingly crafted account
Solti's two very powerful recordings 1.Mahler: Symphony No.22.Mahler: Symphony No.2 - "Resurrection"
Kubelik & Bertini's beaitifully crafted account MAHLER Symphonies 1-10 Rafael Kubelik & Mahler: Symphonies 1-10; Das Lied von der Erde [Box Set] Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mahler Symphony No 2 CD
thanks to the vendor for this super CD. great music and a good deal of it for the money. Plus it was despatched promptly.
Published 17 months ago by spencersings
1.0 out of 5 stars
Am I alone ?
I TOTALLY agree with Mark Meldon's critique. Specifically:- the Philharmonia must have had a very "off day", in parts sounding decidedly raggy, even amateurish ; the low recording... Read more
Published on 20 April 2011 by Christopher Anthony John
4.0 out of 5 stars
"It was too loud" Mahler said.
Gustav Mahler finished the N°2 Symphony in 1874 after seven years of interrupted work. The middle movements and choral finale required a narrative structure so he turned to... Read more
Published on 3 April 2010 by Nora Gluckmann
3.0 out of 5 stars
Klemperer's Mahler 2
Although rather heretical, I have to say that I find this recording less than wonderful and I do think that there are some more recent recordings that are perhaps a better... Read more
Published on 17 Dec 2009 by Mr. Mark A. Meldon
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