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Music : Mahler: Symphony No. 6; Piano Quartet [Hybrid SACD]In association with Amazon.comfrom: Ondine ![: Mahler: Symphony No. 6; Piano Quartet [Hybrid SACD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51KVzo5M4DL._SL160_.jpg) 
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Binding: Audio CDEAN: 0761195108451 Format: Hybrid SACD Label: Ondine Manufacturer: Ondine Number Of Discs: 1 Publisher: Ondine Release Date: October 03, 2006 Studio: Ondine Sales Rank: 91321 Disc 1: Disc 2: Related Items:
Editorial Review: Amazon.com: Mahler himself called his Sixth Symphony the "Tragic," and described it as posing "riddles" accessible only to those who had "digested" his earlier symphonies. As always, he made extensive alterations not only during rehearsals but also after the publication of the score and the 1906 premiere, producing two authentic versions; the existence of a third is in dispute. He revised the orchestration, including the number of the famous hammer strokes, and changed the sequence of the two middle movements, causing still unresolved confusion and dissention. This recording opts for the sequence of the first version and the instrumentation of the second. Cast in four movements, the Symphony is purely orchestral and relatively traditional; however, its initial vehemence and ultimate bleak despair contrast starkly with Mahler's successful personal and professional life at the time. His wife later explained this with dubious autobiographical and symbolic interpretations involving herself, their children, even premonitions about Mahler's own health and the still undreamed of future European catastrophes. She also described it as his most personal, deeply felt work, recalling that they both wept when he first played it for her. Indeed, its emotional immediacy, its extreme mood swings--from driving violence to melting lyricism, from playfulness to bitter parody, from triumph to hopelessness--seem to mirror Mahler's mercurial, tormented personality. The performance is austere, intense, and expansive, but never sentimental, lush, or really warm, even in the profoundly moving Andante. The climaxes soar ecstatically, the Scherzo is diabolical, the opening menacing, the trills and hammer blows terrifying. The single-movement Piano Quartet, a student work, is mostly of historical interest, thematically, harmonically and texturally so primitive that the metamorphosis to Mahler's "real" style appears quite miraculous. The orchestra's fine principals with Eschenbach as pianist do their imaginative best, adding dynamics, rubatos, drama, and excitement. --Edith Eisler Average Rating:
 Rating:  - intense and wonderfully playedAnother disc in Ondine's refreshing series with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Christoph Eschenbach. Mahler's Sixth, possibly because of its classicism in comparison to most of her sisters, lends herself to readings that would otherwise appear un-Mahlerian. Among US orchestras it is the Cleveland Orchestra that has given us two superb examples that, in spite of their differences, can be considered as falling within this broad `classicist/structural' approach. Cleveland did a very fine job first ... Read More Rating: - everything is in place, but it doesn't escape gravity and soarThis new recording of Mahler's "Tragic" 6th symphony has been widely acclaimed. It's easy to hear why -- the playing is impeccable, the sound is incredible, with a strong bottom, and everything seems to be in place. Why, then, does it underwhelm? I can't answer the question, but here are a couple of comparisons -- I still have to go with Bernstein's 1988 live recording with the Vienna Philharmonic as my top choice. This new live recording of Eschenbach leading the Philadelphia Orchestra is comparable ... Read More Rating: - A Mixed ReviewI purchased this release in great anticipation, given the glowing reviews it has received. Eschenbach is a fine Mahler conductor, at least those performances I heard him do, years back, when he was with the Houston Symphony. Having recently heard live (and in a very good seat) Hans Graf and the Houston Symphony do the 6th, in what was one of the *great* performances of any Mahler I have heard live or otherwise, I hoped to have something equally good for home listening. I regret to say this ... Read More Rating:  - A Thrilling Ride Through the Intricacies of Mahler's 6thChristoph Eschenbach is a master at clarifying lines some conductors find confusing in the big complex symphonies, so it is no wonder that he is able to present us with a performance of Mahler's very personal Symphony No. 6 that stands with the most solid and yet transparent. And despite recent grumblings about the Philadelphia Orchestra's regard under his direction, this recording is one of the very finest of this symphony. Eschenbach's decisions about the order of the movements (staying with the original ... Read More Rating: - Despite artistic liberties, one of the best aroundIn this recording, Eschenbach repeatedly has his players do things that I tend to find irksome. He's one of those conductors who seem to think Mahler's "nicht eilen" means "slow down", whereas it only means "stick to the tempo, for as an experienced conductor I, Mahler, know very well that orchestra's tend to rush in passages like this". He also doesn't mind ignoring tempo indications altogether, or instigating tempo changes several bars before the point where the score has them. Every second transition is preceded ... Read More Browse for similar items by category:
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