Mahler's 152nd birthday

[FP23]

Hi everyone,
I know it's a day late, but yesterday marked Mahler's 152nd birthday - did anyone celebrate?
I didn't do much this year, just a quick blog post with a photoshopped picture that I like to call 'Party Gustav' - have a look http://mahlermahlermahler.blogspot.com/2012/07/happy-152nd-mahler.html if you're interested!
My usual way to celebrate Mahler anniversaries is to listen to a complete symphony cycle - what do other people do?

FP

[Constantin]

I was also late in celebrating it, but I watched a brilliant red-orange sunset, as I listened to M9.

[Roffe]

We also seem to have forgotten to celebrate 100 years of M9 (premiered in Vienna on June 26, 1912 under the baton of Bruno Walter). Are we getting senile or what?

Roffe

[barry guerrero]

Honeck/Pittsburgh/Exton M4. Good stuff.

[barry guerrero]

hey FP,

I hope you don't mind that I forwarded your Mahler 'birthday card' around to a few friends who don't regularly visit this site. However, I didn't take credit for it. Awesome job!

Barry Guerrero

[FP23]

haha, no worries! spreading the Mahler love is always good

Ah I had also forgotten about the 9th's centenary until it came up on my twitter feed - I spent the rest of that day listening to it - Barshai, Horenstein, and of course Walter

[Roffe]

Talking about Walter, does anybody know if there exists any new reedited and re-digitalized M recordings? Some of the ones I've got are a bit noisy, especially the 2nd from 1958 and the 4th from 1960.

Roffe

[James Meckley]

Roffe,

I'm told this set has been remastered and sounds somewhat better than previous releases, though I don't own it myself. The price is certainly right, but it may not contain the exact performances you're after. Note that it includes both of Walter's M1 recordings, the earlier one being somewhat more vigorous.

http://www.amazon.com/Bruno-Walter-Conducts-Mahler-Gustav/dp/B006XOBFTM/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Symphony No. 1 in D major
Columbia Symphony Orchestra (1961)

Symphony No. 2 in C minor 'Resurrection'
Emilia Cundari, soprano; Maureen Forrester, contralto
New York Philharmonic (1958)

Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (4 songs, complete)
Mildred Miller, mezzo
Columbia Symphony Orchestra (1960)

Symphony No. 4 in G major
Desi Halban, soprano
New York Philharmonic (1945)

Symphony No. 9 in D major
Columbia Symphony Orchestra (1961)

Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor
New York Philharmonic (1947)

Das Lied von der Erde
Mildred Miller, mezzo; Ernst Haefliger, tenor
New York Philharmonic (1960)

Symphony No. 1 in D major
New York Philharmonic (1954)

Erinnerung (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Scheiden und Meiden (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Nicht wiedersehen (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Ich ging mit Lust (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Ablösung im Sommer (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Hans und Grete (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Frühlingsmorgen (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Starke Einbildungskraft (Lieder und Gesänge aus der Jugendzeit)
Desi Halban, soprano (1947)

James

[James Meckley]

Speaking, as we were, of Bruno Walter and the Columbia Symphony, I just became aware this afternoon that Dr. Walter's CBS/SONY recording of Beethoven 9 (SMK 64 464) was recorded by two different orchestras in two different cities. The first three movements were recorded in Hollywood during January, 1959, by the West Coast incarnation of the "Columbia Symphony Orchestra," and the last movement was recorded in New York City during April, 1959, by the East Coast incarnation of the "Columbia Symphony Orchestra." A bi-coastal Beethoven Ninth!

James

[Roffe]

Thank you, James, for the info on Walter's M recordings. Very priceworthy indeed.

Re: Beethoven
More or less the same thing happened to Klemperer when he was recording Das Lied von der Erde, a recording that was partially live, and partially studio spanning over a time period of two years. By the time the last recordings were made the Philharnonia Orchestra didn't exist any more and was replaced by The New Philharmonia Orchestra (with more or less the same people as the Phil.O.). Anyway, the result came out as, to say the least, one of the greatest recordings ever of this piece.

Roffe

[waderice]

If people here are willing to try downloads of FLAC files (not free, unfortunately), convert them to .WAV files, and then transfer to CD, both of Walter's accounts of DLvdE from 1936 and 1952 have been remastered by Andrew Rose of Pristine Audio.  I haven't yet had a chance to listen to these and compare them to the original EMI and Decca CD issues, but from my previous experiences with Pristine Audio's remasterings, I would say that they get it right about two out of three times.  Here are the two links regarding these reissues:

http://www.pristineclassical.com/LargeWorks/Orchestral/PASC108.php

http://www.pristineclassical.com/LargeWorks/Orchestral/PASC109.php

Klemperer's 1951 account of M2 with the Concertgebouw and Mengelberg's 1939 account of M4, also with the Concertgebouw, are also available from Pristine Audio:

http://www.pristineclassical.com/LargeWorks/Orchestral/PASC265.php

http://www.pristineclassical.com/LargeWorks/Orchestral/PASC055.php

Wade