Question on Boulez/Staatskapelle Berlin/DG M8th

[John Kim]

I may be ignorant on this and I admit I don't have the score, but somebody please explain to me:

In Part I of this recording I hear a fair amount of low pedal organ notes that comes off wonderfully and very clearly on my speaker as well as headphones. But why can't I hear them in Part II., especially in the coda where I really think the organ should be prominent? Are the low key notes indicated here or not? Or is it Boulez doing?  I love this recording very much in all other aspects but I can't let this pass by. It's so frustrating....

I'd appreciate your comments.

John,

[John Kim]

Maybe it's just my audio equipment that can't reproduce the organ faithfully. To be correct, I think I can hear those low notes in Part II. but they don't sound as prominent as they do in Part I.

John,

[barry guerrero]

John,

If you have a decent sub-woofer, the low organ notes ARE sufficient at the end of Part II. But you're right: the organ is fuller sounding in Part 1 than in is in Part II. It's hard to guess if this was a deliberate choice on Boulez's part, or if things just happened to turn out that way. Remember, they basically rented an electronic organ for the recording sessions. What bothers me isn't a lack of bass at the end of Part II, but rather that the upper notes of the organ are not very audible. I believe that that might have a been a deliberate choice in order to make the offstage brass sound clearer. I frankly feel that it's very nicely balanced, but would still like to hear much more of the tam-tam at the end.

It seems clear to me that Boulez wanted to make the concluding "Gloria" to Part 1 as grand and vulgar - in the good sense of the term,  "vulgar" - as humanly possible. That being the case, I think he made a deliberate attempt to make the end of Part II sound different. Something's lost, but something's gained as well. For example, I really like how he allows his trombones to just crunch those octave harmonies near end of Part II, just before the final series of cymbal/tam-tam smashes. I also like his slower than normal tempo.

In the final analysis, I agree with you: it is slightly frustrating. It would be nice if Euroarts could issue a DVD of the live performance from the Philharmonie, just as they did with the "Resurrection" (vastly superior to his Vienna one, in my opinion). But you have to give credit where credit is due: Boulez has taken a giant stride in making the mighty 8th more musical than it usually is, without also making it really boring (Abbado!). I really love the grand spectacle that he makes of Part I's ending; and, I like how he lets his trombones go to town near the end of Part II. More gong would have helped a lot.

[John Kim]

Barry,

Thanks for your thoughts on the matter.

Your remarks now make sense.

One more glitch I noticed is that a timpani roll at one place near the end of Part II., a few notes before the end of choral singing, where there is no orchestral background, seems to be missing. I can hear it in all other recordings but not here. I doubt Boulez used a difference version of the score.

Other than these, this might be best overall M8th so far, musically solid with pretty good singing and a top notch orchestra in beautiful sound.

John,

[barry guerrero]

John,

I'm hoping that Ondine will record the upcoming Eschenbach/Philadelphia M8. I just have the feeling that that's going to be THE grand-daddy of all M8's - ever! I read at one blogsite that Ondine DID record their recent "Resurrection" performances. I'm getting D.H. to investigate into that question.

So, if Ondine is issuing the Eschenbach/Philly M2, perhaps we can twist their arms into doing the 8th as well. It's a long shot, because there are a lot more hungry mouths to feed with the 8th. If not, there'll always be the MTT, which should happen sometime this decade.

[Leo K]

Excellant observations on the Boulez M8 gentleman...I must go back to this recording and check it out...I agree this is one of the great M8's, and I put Rattle's M8 on DVD in the same catagory of greatness.


--Todd