- Audio CD (25 Oct 1990)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: Sony
- ASIN: B0000026PQ
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 398,144 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
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Product details |
Track Listings
| 1. Symphony No.4: Bedachtig, Nicht Eilen |
| 2. Symphony No.4: In Gemachlicher Bewegung, Ohne Hast |
| 3. Symphony No.4: Ruhevoll |
| 4. Symphony No.4: Sehr Behaglich |
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk
Lorin Maazel's Mahler cycle was very inconsistent-downright weird in some places-but this performance was the jewel: a sensitive, deliberate, fantastically detailed but never fussy performance of Mahler's lightest symphony. Not only does Maazel let you hear more of Mahler's fantastic orchestration than virtually anyone else, he encourages the players to revel in the textures, which often resemble those of chamber music. There's a relaxed, sunny quality to the music-making that suits the symphony's essentially innocent qualities perfectly. Maazel is helped in no small measure by Kathleen Battle's pure, openhearted singing of the finale. Again, the slow tempo never drags; it just gives you a better chance to enjoy the musical scenery. --David Hurwitz
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.6 out of 5 stars
12 reviews
21 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Highly Recommended, and Kathleen Battle is Unbelievable...
22 Feb 2001
By Ed Luhrs
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Audio CD
I strongly recommend this recording in conjunction with Szell's famed recording with the Cleveland Orchestra. Both are fine picks. Maazel's interpretation here is quite remarkable. He effectively evokes a liveliness and lovely sense of nostalgia from the Vienna Philharmonic when the music calls for it. In terms of orchestral playing, Szell's interpretation is only slightly more remarkable. Both recordings possess an equally fine balance of sound.
The biggest selling point of Maazel's performance is Kathleen Battle. She is absolutely perfect for the "Wir geniessen die himmlischen Freuden" lieder finale. If you read the lyrics (and/or translation), the story tells about a young person describing what it's like in heaven... an unending feast with the saints cooking asparagus and slaughtering innocent little animals for the barbecue. Battle really gets into it. Her voice is clear as a bell, and she sounds like an imaginative and playful young child. One critic described Battle's delivery as a "mother knows best" interpretation. No way! If anything, Judith Raskin sounds more like Mom in the Szell recording - quite nice, but matronly.
Either performance is brilliant, but when it comes to the delivery of the final movement, I think Battle conveys the spirit of the music with a beauty that remains virtually unmatched.
The biggest selling point of Maazel's performance is Kathleen Battle. She is absolutely perfect for the "Wir geniessen die himmlischen Freuden" lieder finale. If you read the lyrics (and/or translation), the story tells about a young person describing what it's like in heaven... an unending feast with the saints cooking asparagus and slaughtering innocent little animals for the barbecue. Battle really gets into it. Her voice is clear as a bell, and she sounds like an imaginative and playful young child. One critic described Battle's delivery as a "mother knows best" interpretation. No way! If anything, Judith Raskin sounds more like Mom in the Szell recording - quite nice, but matronly.
Either performance is brilliant, but when it comes to the delivery of the final movement, I think Battle conveys the spirit of the music with a beauty that remains virtually unmatched.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Maazel, a great Mahlerian....
26 Oct 2002
By Ytzan
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Audio CD
It's a pitty that we label conductors. Mahlerian, Brucknerian... Maazel is one of the most versitile conductors of today and I have had the chance to hear him twice live (with the BRSO) in breathtaking performances of the Classics and the Romantics. I have acquired his complete cycle with the VPO for Sony and I was greatly surprised with the music-making. There are for sure instances that Horenstein and Bernstein can not be surpassed but this account of the 4th has it's place with the very best. Clean sound, sentimental playing and a great finale with Kathleen Battle singing heavenly. Bravo Maestro....
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of Maazel's Best Conducted Mahler Symphonies
9 May 2001
By John Kwok
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Audio CD
Without a doubt, Lorin Maazel and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra recorded an important, if by no means, definitive, Mahler symphony cycle in the 1980's. This performance is among the best in that cycle. Maazel gives a straightforward reading of Mahler's most "Pastorale" symphony. The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra plays Mahler's score with a strongly pronounced lush, warm Viennese sound. Admittedly some may find it a bit too warm for their tastes. Yet this recording is a highly recommend account of Mahler's 4th Symphony in the 1999 edition of the Grammophone Guide to Classical CDs. Kathleen Battle's singing is wonderful; her voice glows, with a bell-like intonation. Even if this isn't your first choice for a Mahler 4th Symphony, it is still one worth owning.
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4.6 out of 5 stars
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