Search - John Shirley-Quirk, Gustav Mahler, Georg Solti :: Mahler: Symphony No. 8

The most famous recording of the Mahler 8th

J. Schofield | Cirque Du Soleil | 09/18/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"That is due to the fact that when it was recorded, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Solti were at the top of the Orchestra ladder. The brass section was considered the best in the symphonic world. And this work has monumental brass parts that require superhuman effort to play. This recording was made in Vienna. There's an article written that says many members of the Vienna Philharmonic's brass section were present during the recording and allowed to watch. And after the mighty and heroic conclussion of the work walked out of the recording site mumbling to themselves. The brass playing is that wonderful (I'm a orchestral percussionist by education and performance). The other parts of the orchestra really shine too. The choirs (how can you go wrong with the Vienna Opera Choir?) are exemplary too. And the soloists are at their top form (sadly, many aren't around anymore).



My biggest beef is with Solti's tempi. I have always felt that he moved at a quicker clip than other conductors. In the first movement, Veni Creator Spiritus, this works well because it is a very dramatic and kinetic movement. However, at the very end, with brass choirs supplementing the orchestra and blazing, his tempo moves just a bit too fast. It's a small complaint, but Solti is sometimes accused of this. Also, I feel his conducting is sometimes clinical, say the opposite of Bernstein. On occassion, it happens here. I have the LP still and used it to compare to this recording. The brass parts on the LP shine and are played in correct intonation. But the CD has some really weird parts on the brass. There are times that the brass is so in the background that you cannot distinguish it from the winds. Other times, it comes out blazing in an unnatural crescendo relative to the score. I think the engineers who remastered this version had some difficulties. In all fairness though, this piece is very difficult to record simply because there are so many instruments and singers. Things like where to place the brass choir to give the feeling of a Celestial Host, inserting the piano and organ in proper balance to the rest is very difficult for a balance engineer.



If performance is your criteria though, you can't get much better than this. It's exciting and breathtaking."

A famous recording, now in best sound

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 11/13/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Decca's recording engineers were the best in the world at capturing orhestral impact, as they showed in Solti's Ring cycle. His Mahler Eighth won equal fame for sonic drama--this huge symphony sounds as massive exploding from home speakers as it might in live performance. The orchestra and soloists are also first rate--Part II benefits from having almost no weak singers and many that re among the best ever--and to this day Solti's version ranks very high in sales and fame.



Musically, however, thre is the usual high-voltage Solti aggressive drive throughout and little poetry. The famed sonics were surprisingly shrill and uncomfortable in earlier digital issues--whatever hapened to the gorgeous bloom of the LP originals? But this Originals remastering in 96/24 sound is the best ever, even though it doesn't sound natural at high volume levels. I have known this set since the day it shot out of the cannon, and in the intervening decades it's been a relief to hear more musical versions by Haitink, Sinopoli, Bernstein, Abbado, Gielen, and Colin Davis. Not that fans of this blockbuster CD will be discouraged.

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Simply The Best Mahler 8

Music Is Everything | Colorado Springs, CO USA | 12/25/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Solti and the Chicago Symphony made dozens of excellent recordings, but this is the best of the best--the definitive performance of Mahler's 8th Symphony. But you don't have to believe me; listen to the musicians of the Vienna Philharmonic. In 1971, Vienna and Chicago traded cities for a short time. Chicago recorded Mahler's 8th just before leaving Viennna, when the Vienna musicians had already returned. Many of them were sitting in the hall, listening to the recording session, completely stunned at what they were hearing. This is a performance for all time and a privilege to experience. Enjoy."