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Quote from: John Kim on February 13, 2010, 06:20:04 AMQuote from: sbugala on February 13, 2010, 05:06:22 AMSadly, I listened to this via Rhapsody earlier in the week, and I found it waaaaaaaay too slow. The playing is phenomenal, but there's not much "there" there. I love the sound of several of the New York Philharmonic principal players, but that wasn't enough to overcome the static tempos. In fairness, my listening was done via tiny computer speakers, but I would encourage some sampling before taking the plunge. If this were on vinyl, I'd be checking the pitch control to make sure the speed was set correctly. I was unfamiliar with Rhapsody.com, but they give you 25 free samples, which give you plenty of movements to listen to. Sprawling movements, like M3:I or M9:I still count as one listen. On the downside, I imagine that M8, with its multiple tracks, would eat up lots of listening. I wanted to like this, but afterwards, I found myself unwilling to purchase a single symphony from this set. I certainly understand your reaction. But when there are multiple versions out there that take the symphony as slow as Maazel does here, e.g., Giulini, Bernstein, Levine, Maazel's certainly doesn't come as a shock. True, the first 5 min. or so is very slow, so slow that it feels as if the music is about to stall. But once you get past the part his conducting picks up, culminating in the stunning first climax. Eventually, you become aware of the cumulative power that has been piled up. More importantly, no matter how slow the music gets Maazel's never loses forest for trees (he did in the VPO recording) and maintains a very cogent reading throughout the movement.John,Bernstein rarely feels slow to me. I manage to get swept away by it all. I picked up the Levine on lp, and while it is slow, it does have contrast. (But the pressing is terrible. That one needs a better remastering.) However, with the Maazel, I just kept thinking the only contrast was between slow and slower. I confess that my listening situation was probably far from ideal via tiny laptop speakers for an extended duration. Yet I walked away loving Wit's M8 on Naxos listening under the same circumstances a few months ago. For me, Maazel's best work was his earlier stuff, like his Berlin Brahms 3rd, and Beethoven 5 and 6. I really wish that mind wouldn't tackled Mahler back then. But the amazing thing about all of this is we all have a different opinion, and mine will change over time. I'm just glad we even GET all these choices! I would like to give Gilbert's M3 a try. The New York Philharmonic has always been one of my favorite orchestras, and we'll see what that one yields.
Quote from: sbugala on February 13, 2010, 05:06:22 AMSadly, I listened to this via Rhapsody earlier in the week, and I found it waaaaaaaay too slow. The playing is phenomenal, but there's not much "there" there. I love the sound of several of the New York Philharmonic principal players, but that wasn't enough to overcome the static tempos. In fairness, my listening was done via tiny computer speakers, but I would encourage some sampling before taking the plunge. If this were on vinyl, I'd be checking the pitch control to make sure the speed was set correctly. I was unfamiliar with Rhapsody.com, but they give you 25 free samples, which give you plenty of movements to listen to. Sprawling movements, like M3:I or M9:I still count as one listen. On the downside, I imagine that M8, with its multiple tracks, would eat up lots of listening. I wanted to like this, but afterwards, I found myself unwilling to purchase a single symphony from this set. I certainly understand your reaction. But when there are multiple versions out there that take the symphony as slow as Maazel does here, e.g., Giulini, Bernstein, Levine, Maazel's certainly doesn't come as a shock. True, the first 5 min. or so is very slow, so slow that it feels as if the music is about to stall. But once you get past the part his conducting picks up, culminating in the stunning first climax. Eventually, you become aware of the cumulative power that has been piled up. More importantly, no matter how slow the music gets Maazel's never loses forest for trees (he did in the VPO recording) and maintains a very cogent reading throughout the movement.John,
Sadly, I listened to this via Rhapsody earlier in the week, and I found it waaaaaaaay too slow. The playing is phenomenal, but there's not much "there" there. I love the sound of several of the New York Philharmonic principal players, but that wasn't enough to overcome the static tempos. In fairness, my listening was done via tiny computer speakers, but I would encourage some sampling before taking the plunge. If this were on vinyl, I'd be checking the pitch control to make sure the speed was set correctly. I was unfamiliar with Rhapsody.com, but they give you 25 free samples, which give you plenty of movements to listen to. Sprawling movements, like M3:I or M9:I still count as one listen. On the downside, I imagine that M8, with its multiple tracks, would eat up lots of listening. I wanted to like this, but afterwards, I found myself unwilling to purchase a single symphony from this set.
However, with the Maazel, I just kept thinking the only contrast was between slow and slower.
