Mahler: Symphony No.8 [CD]

As a Mahler 8 junkie, it's my opinion that Rattle's 8th gets short-changed in critical circles. And I say that as somehow who's not a big fan of Simon Rattle in general.

Is it definitive? . . of course not, but what Mahler 8th truly is? Considering how large this work is, and just how difficult it is to capture on recording, I think we've been remarkably lucky. By and large, I think that this is one of the more solid casts that have been put together for Mahler 8 in recent years. I certainly like the three men employed here far more than those used on the highly praised MTT/SFSO version. If nothing else, tenor Jon Villars is certainly preferable to Anthony Dean Griffey. For my taste, the best sung M8 of any is the old Kubelik, who's "live" version can now be purchased on an Audite sacd/cd hybrid. But that's one of the earliest Mahler 8ths to have been recorded, and so it lacks a bit in spacial imagery and dynamic range, shall we say.

Are there some interpretive and logistical problems here? . . of course there are. But by and large, they're not deal breakers. Not for me, anyway.

The first major problem is that Rattle takes the end to Part I so fast that the offstage brass and ascending choral runs become a blur (remember, Mahler tempers his instructions to race to the end with the word, "etwas" - somewhat). However, he's in good company with this no-no, as Tilson Thomas does pretty much the same thing (it's so much better when you can hear the offstage brass parts clearly). The other major problem is that there's so much organ at the end of Part II, that the offstage trumpets and onstage percussion (tam-tam/cymbals) nearly get covered over. But hey, I'll take too much organ over too little ANY DAY (are you listening MTT/SFSO?). Afterall, Mahler marks the organ fortissimo at the end of both parts, with the added instructions to pull all the stops out. Believe me, you get that here. Also, this problem gets somewhat addressed in this remastered version, particularly in regards to the brass.

For those who already know the Rattle recording, the question is simply how does this remastering job sound in relation to the original release. Without doing an A/B comparison (I no longer own the original "red book" issue), it's my impression that the remastered version is clearly a bit better. But that said, I like my DVD-A even more, which does an even better job of tempering some of the screechy highs. As a mid-price reissue, I'll take this one over the Solti any day. For one thing, it's far better integrated. By that, I mean that it doesn't sound like everything is being blended through 1,200 different microphones. Also, the Solti has always struck me as being a bit of a mismatch between the muscular, almost brittle sounding trumpets and trombones of the C.S.O., and the rounded, soft-edged singing of the Viennese choral forces. But that's all greatly a matter of taste, as the Solti is certainly good in any technical sense of the word. It's been famous over the decades for good reasons, even if it isn't my favorite. Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I think that the Rattle is a very good Mahler 8th in general - certainly one that avoids some of the excessive interpretive liberties that some other famous Mahlerians seem to frequently indulge themselves with.

It's just a PR gambit for EMI to call this the definitive Mahler Eighth, which is forgivable in the down market of classical music. but for me Simon Rattle's version is a non-starter, and among recent Eighths an also-ran to the ones from Boulez on DG and Michael Tilson Thomas on the San Francisco symphony's house label. I had the following thoughts on its first release in 2005:

Rattle has some good ideas--he is a prominent Mahlerian, after all--but the Birmingham forces, both orchestra and chorus, aren't up to a high enough standard, and the soloists, though good, don't excel, either. So this reading was a non-starter for me, and another example of why I distrust critics at the Gramophone when it comes to British performers. They freeted this Eighth like the second coming.

Rattle has a better Mahler Eighth from the Proms 2002 in London that feels much more immediate and vital than this one, even though the Birmingham performances were done very closely. You have to find it online from a share group, and the orchestra is the expanded Youth Orch. of Great Britain, who perform with amazing panache and commitment. Maybe they sparked Rattle to more spontaneity.