Track Listing

1. Symphony No. 2 in C minor ('Resurrection'): Allegro maestoso. Mit durchaus ernstem und feierlichem Ausdruck
2. Symphony No. 2 in C minor ('Resurrection'): Andante moderato. Sehr gem�chlich
3. Symphony No. 2 in C minor ('Resurrection'): In ruhig fliessender Bewegung
4. Symphony No. 2 in C minor ('Resurrection'): "Urlicht" (from Des Knaben Wunderhorn) Sehr feierlich, aber schlicht
5. Symphony No. 2 in C minor ('Resurrection'): Im Tempo des Scherzo. Wild herausfahrend - "Aufersteh'n"

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #119987 in Music
• Released on: 2006-06-13
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Amazon.com
This Mahler two is very odd, indeed. Boulez's way with this composer has always been transparent and vaguely clinical, but here, though details are exquisite and everything is polished and beautifully played, he has managed to drain much of the power from the work. From the very start---those low string grumbles---we feel as if drama is secondary, and that feeling does not abate as the work goes on. What is normally heart-wrenching is here matter-of-fact: the great final moments are preceded by an low-volume organ and the brass and chorus play and sing with what I can only call "reserve" or a "matte finish" when brilliance, thrust, and great brightness are called for. I can't imagine what Boulez was thinking about this apocalyptic work when he opted to deliver a mild performance of it. Soloists are excellent, as is all the singing and playing, but this will leave you wanting to hear Mahler's Second Symphony in a truly searing reading (in which case you should try Leonard Bernstein's on Sony). --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews

A fascinating reading, but not the one and only
Boulez is nearing the completion of his Mahler cycle, and this Second displays all the features we have come to expect from earlier instalments: tremendous textural clarity, and a precision that some may find surgical, but that guarantees you will hear many things that went unnoticed before. Yet there is nothing academic or cool about the performance, and though in places it sounds surprisingly different from the (many) other versions I know, it is never deliberately revisionist. More often than not, what we hear is simply the result of faithfulness to the score. E.g., just before number 23 in the first movement, most recordings focus on the lovely line in the cor anglais; but it is the flute who has the main melody, marked "hervortretend", and Boulez gets the balance exactly right. Rhytmically, this version is as taut as any you will ever hear; in passages like the rush of demi-semiquavers before 44 in the Scherzo every note is articulated. Which is, of course, first and foremost a tribute to the magnificent VPO, possibly the best orchestra in the world. As in Boulez's impressive recording of the Third, the presence of trombone and tuba pedal notes is spectacular and lends a dark, raw edge to the music that is very appropriate. All through the symphony there are many moments of heartstopping beauty and delightful surprise; nonetheless, the overall impression is one of stern majesty (think Haitink) rather than romantic indulgence (think Bernstein).
Some listeners will no doubt take issue with the very brisk tempos of the second and third movements. I wasn't quite convinced that the Scherzo, especially, fits Mahler's description "ruhig fliessend" or follows up on his admonishment "nicht eilen". It is the same problem encountered in "Der Einsame im Herbst" from Boulez's otherwise thoroughly perfect "Das Lied von der Erde". Furthermore, though Michelle DeYoung's singing can hardly be faulted, I did not feel that her creamy voice with its strong vibrato was the right choice for "Urlicht", or for this particular recording. Petra Lang's performance for Chailly remains an unchallenged touchstone there.
The finale is marvellously executed almost throughout, combining a sense of purpose with sheer visceral impact, and culminating in the tremendous repetition of the opening measures just before the "Grosze Appel". The interchanges of the distant horns and trumpets, too, are done to a tee. After that, unfortunately, some of the momentum is lost. The chorus sing beautifully, but seem a bit lacking in bite, and are balanced just a tad too distantly. Then, at figure 48, the final peroration sounds somewhat clipped, and the organ is hardly audible. The final, orchestral bars, too, had me wishing for a more present organ, more assertive bells, and simply more decibels. In the end, this symphony is one giant crescendo that culminates here, and having heard the blazes unleashed by say, Bernstein (DG) or Kaplan (IMP), I find Boulez does not quite deliver the goods. Though that is disappointing, overall this is a highly distinguished performance by a formidable orchestra, full of revealing insights, and spectacularly recorded. No true Mahler fan should miss it.

Boulez and Vienna -- a lush, cooler view
It has become predictable that Boulez is attacked from some quarters, but I have a question -- if you already know that you don't like Boulez's approach, why listen? If you are one of those who hates Boulez, then just stay away. I, for one, hope to hear Boulez conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performing Mahler's 7th this fall. This review is for those who are more open-minded.

This is a lush, beautiful rendering of Mahler's Symphony No. 2, revealing detail and texture, and building to a cooler climax than you might expect if you have heard the more passionate performances of Bernstein and others. None of this will come as a surprise to those familiar with Boulez. One reviewer has described this recording as "barnstorming" -- utter nonsense. I do still prefer the classic 1962 Klemperer and 1975 Mehta, the latter also with Vienna -- they are indeed more passionate than Boulez. But some of us enjoy more than one approach to a great symphony. Solti's operatic approach to Mahler's 8th, for instance, is radically different from Gielen's cooler approach that emphasizes texture, an approach more like Boulez here with the 2nd. I find both to be valid, and I enjoy being able to hear them as alternatives, rather than seeing/hearing one as right and the other wrong. (Of course, there are works that I have definite views on, such as the finale of Shostakovich's 5th, which should be slow, and the central fast movements of Shostakovich's 8th, which should be fast!)

If you know that you prefer Mahler set at maximum passion and intensity, then I would not recommend this recording. But if you are open to other interpretations, and if you appreciate the finest precision in conducting and musicianship, then by all means, you should hear Boulez's 2nd!

Mahler 2 updated by Boulez
Listening to this pristine new contender to Mahler 2 recordings by Boulez, I immediately was recalling my very first electrifying encounter with Mahler in the late 1960s by Bruno Walter's 1957/1958 NYP performance on CBS Records . Although I grew up with Walter's, Klemperer's, Bernstein's, Kubelik's and Solti's visions of Mahler, I am strongly sympathizing with Boulez' refusal to engage with the music's theatricality. The result is a very plain and simple (German: schlicht), almost chamber music-like, yet majestic, utterly convincing performance. No kitsch or pathos here - Boulez shows, that the music simply does not need that - instead he underlines the violence of the writing in the 1st and 5th movements with the help of excellent, quite appropriately coarse playing brass section and percussion of visceral impact and delivers wonderfully flowing 2nd and 3rd movements. In the final part of movement 5 the organ is woven into the music's texture rather than emphasized, which I think is not a result of a generally weak instrument at the Musikverein Saal but deliberately done so by Boulez and perfectly fits into his anti-theatrical approach. VPO's , soloist's and chorus' obvious affinity to Boulez' concept leads the entire team to let every single note come with ease - flawless playing and singing, remarkably beautiful so Christine Schaefer's account in the 5th movement. I can't remember having heard a more moving and faithful "Oh glaube, Du wardst nicht umsonst geboren.." in any recording. Michelle DeYoung in "Urlicht" is very convincing, too, although I think less vibrato and improved diction would have served the music better.

The overall impression of this recording is that Boulez - unlike many other conductors - does not feel the need to explain Mahler's work. Instead, his self-effacing approach reveals the architecture of the score and lets the music powerfully speak for itself. The result, however, while firmly rooted in an aura of romanticism, express aspects of Mahler's work that are far beyond such an easy explanation, arising from a part of the human spirit that is beyond personality.