I have a confession: I have avoided all Mahler for the last year. I didn't listen to a single cd, go to a concert, or play one with Mahler on it. On purpose. But this July I made up for it with a vengeance. I started out July with the Bertini set - wonderful, just thrilling - everything seems so right. Great playing, superb conducting, excellent recordings.
Then I realized that this year is the 100th anniversary of Bernstein's birth - so I went to his NY/LSO set - the one I basically grew up with and was once again enthralled.
When that was finished, I started on the Bernstein DVD set with mostly Vienna. Tonight I finished the set - thoroughly delighted. This is music making at the highest level. I haven't watched those dvds in years. This is how Mahler should be done! What passion, what love Bernstein has for those symphonies. The closing pages of M2 (with the LSO) is just stunning in its intensity. Ok, so there some minor flubs in the live performances, and the VPO wasn't really known for playing that much Mahler at the time. I'm so glad I made a re-acquaintance with this set. It also made me quite sad that I wasn't there for any of them - not my fault entirely, but will we ever see the likes of Bernstein again? What a magnificent legacy. Tomorrow I will start with Bernstein's DG set.
Of course, the main thing is the music. After a year away from this remarkable set of symphonies I listened to them anew. This is great music, no doubt about it. It still speaks to us and is still worth exploring. Life enhancing and life changing is what it is. Bernstein and Mahler; what a combination.
