I was lucky to pick up the parcel at my local post office a min. before they closed and I did listen to the first two movts of the Macal M9th twice now. What can I say...? I LOVE IT!! In a way, since I had warmed to Macal's M7th with CPO I knew what to expect of this new M9th and this one filled pretty much every bit of my expectation. Granted, it would be a mistake to anticipate Bernsteinian touches in Macal's recordings. But his way with the score is so fascinating, convincing, and full of new, fresh ideas that it completely carried me away. First, the playing. It is in my book the most beautifully played and recorded rendition. The strings are rich and luminous, woodwinds wooping idiomatically and appropriately "Czechoslovakian", the brass smooth but well blended and powerful. Yes, the third climax in I. sounds somewhat downscaled not because Macal "underplays" it but because Macal rushes through the passage. Thankfully, he applies a big retardando at the place where Mahler marks Pesante (right before the huge collapse), while the accompanying bass drum roll is as mighty as I can recall hearing elsewhere. I didn't feel the tam tam was particularly weak. In addition, the low A horn clearly audible roaring in the background. If the the climax ever feels slightly less than what it should be (it doesn't, to my ears), it is all to good effects because by scaling it down Macal avoids the straight one-two-three approach that so many conductors adopt which generates an overly tragic and monotonic feeling in the music. It is as if Macal was saying, "What's the point of repeating the same outburst three times??". Another highlight is that after brilliantly building up to the second climax, following the passage where the whole strings play out the second theme in a dancing fashion, Macal skillfully slows down the tempo. Thus, the snarling low brass is hauntingly effective thanks to the slowness in the music. The movement simply gains so much more weight because of this passage. Speaking of tempo shift, Macal also changes his gear right after the first climax following the timpani roll; he certainly sees this as a transitioning spot and begins a new chapter from this point on. Too often, conductors just keep moving things ahead as if the climax meant nothing. There are other elements that make this recording sound no other's but Macal's own and I'd rather leave you to find and relish them yourselves. In Macal's hands II. is not blessed with much contrast between the slow and fast sections, but by kicking off in a lively tempo he imbues a new life into the whole Landler movement. The waltz section, when it finally arrives after the swift introduction, doesn't feel cheap or light as it does in most of other recordings. I think this is a terrific interpretation that made me rethink about the structure of the whole movement. Emotionally, it reminds me that life is not all that harsh after all and there are still things in this mundane world that can be joyful. Once again, the conducting and playing were completely convincing.
The sound is simply the BEST I ever heard of any Mahler recording or even ANY recording. It is rich, smooth and vibrant but with plenty of impact as well as ambiance, especially the deep low strings sounding startlingly forward. Above all, Macal demonstrates his firm Mahlerian idioms by putting each instrument in an excellent sonic perspective. Not that he balances every instrument evenly as Ashkenazy did in yet another CPO/Exton recording; he does emphasize certain instruments such as low string and horn but in such a way that the whole music sounds very unique in his hands. It is a gorgeous feast for ears indeed.
It might just be everything I've dreamed of about Mahler Ninth. But wait, I still need to finish III. & IV.
John,
Topic: Macal/CPO/Exton Mahler Ninth I. & II. - the first impression (Read 11951 times)