M4 - The soprano placed "in" the orchestra

[Toblacher]

In my forty years of concertgoing, I've attended at least a dozen live peformances of the 4th and I can recall only one (a concert by the Jerusalem Symphony in Philadelphia in 1976) where the conductor placed the soprano at the rear of the orchestra, on a platform that a cello soloist would use. 

This is what GM himself did when he last conducted it in New York in January, 1911. I believe though he never specified in the score anything about the placement of the soprano.

Has anyone else ever seen a conductor place the soprano anywhere else but beside the podium?

[barry guerrero]

In Dallas, they placed the entire cast of soloists for M8 behind the orchestra (at the front of the choir, in other words). I think they sometimes put the mezzo in with the women/children's choir in M3.

[waderice]

When I did M2 38 years ago, Antal Dorati had the soloists seated with the Chorus on the back row, but they projected and sounded just fine.

I think soloist placement is something that most composers, Mahler included, left up to the conductor, unless there were specific directions as to placement.

Wade