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General Category => Gustav Mahler and Related Discussions => Topic started by: sbugala on May 15, 2019, 08:58:51 PM

Title: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: sbugala on May 15, 2019, 08:58:51 PM
There's a Blomstedt Mahler 9th with the Bamberg Symphony that's on the horizon. I'm looking forward to streaming it for a listen when it's available. I think his M2 is under-rated. Any thoughts on how good of an orchestra Bamberg is?

Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: erikwilson7 on May 16, 2019, 12:54:05 AM
Bamberg impressed me with every release on the Nott cycle. I think they’re quite underrated. Blomstedt + M9 sounds like it could be a real winner, and it will likely be a live recording too. I haven’t heard his M2, but I’ll be sure to check it out soon.
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: barryguerrero on May 16, 2019, 06:03:35 AM
I agree. At first, I kidded John Kim about J. Nott and the Bamberg S.O. over its Mahler 9 release. I shouldn't have. Although it's not my favorite Mahler 9, it is indeed very, very good. I particularly like M2, M4, M7 and M8 from Nott's Bamberg cycle.
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: erikwilson7 on May 16, 2019, 02:44:18 PM
J. Nott’s M2 with Bamberg was a real hit for me. It may even be my top choice for a modern recording of M2 (along with I. Fischer’s), and I’m still surprised by some of the negative reviews Nott’s received. I also find his M8 essential.
And I too would recommend his M7, as well as his M3.
I don’t think there are any real duds in that cycle, though his M1, M6, and Das Lied weren’t anything to write home about in my opinion. The Jonas Kaufmann Das Lied extravaganza was a bit odd to me, though it wasn’t with the Bamberger Symphoniker.
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: erikwilson7 on May 20, 2019, 06:55:41 PM
The timings for Blomstedt M9 will be as follows:

I. 29:27
II. 16:26
III. 13:09
IV. 24:26

Total 1:23:28
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: Russell on June 07, 2019, 04:41:31 AM
The hi-res download is now available at ProStudioMasters for just US$14.39 (for a limited time):

https://www.prostudiomasters.com/album/page/34764

Russell
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: erikwilson7 on June 07, 2019, 07:42:30 PM
My initial thoughts:

The outer two movements are sublime. The first movement, to me, doesn't breathe as much as other, more intense readings, but that doesn't detract from the beauty of the playing. Blomstedt's tranquil tempi in the spaces between the huge climaxes have a timeless feel to them which is very effective. The major climax of the movement is quite devastating, and at first I couldn't detect the deep bells (here chimes, I think) but they became increasingly present which made for an interesting effect. This may be one of the more gorgeous accounts of the finale on record, too, and that's in part due to the amazing, rich sound quality. The tempi here feel just right. Not much more to say for now, but these two movements are a must-hear in my opinion.

The inner movements suffer only from issues in tempo and pacing. The artistic quality of the conducting, playing, and sound engineering is great throughout, but both of these movements are quite leisurely. I don't think Blomstedt captures the rustic spirit of the different Ländler dances enough, though the accents and ornaments are all there. The same goes for the third movement, where I again felt like things were a little too well-controlled and not nearly manic enough. The middle section of this movement is phenomenal, but the coda fails to get much faster after each variation. The glockenspiel and that snare roll are a bit drowned out in the mix too, but that's a very small nitpick on my part.

Overall, extremely fine playing from the Bambergers, and Blomstedt conducts very well throughout with some unusual interpretive choices for the pacing of the inner movements. The sound engineers at Accentus are on their A game here (no pun intended), with clear and dynamic sound quality that compares with the best-sounding M9 recordings, namely Daniel Harding, Iván Fischer, and Jonathan Nott. I'll definitely be giving this recording more listens soon.
Title: Re: Blomstedt Mahler 9 with the Bamberg Symphony
Post by: John Kim on June 08, 2019, 06:56:44 PM
Blomstedt's take on Mahler's last completed (and GREAT) work grows on me each time I give it a spin. It is an unusually warm and expansive reading in the tradition of Bruno Walter's Columbia recording.

I don't know ... maybe I am getting old!