Molter Europa Symphony

Recorded live in 2016—almost exactly 100 years to the day since Leopold Stokowski conducted The Philadelphia Orchestra in the US premiere of the work—Mahler’s Eighth once again awes and overwhelms. Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s superb musicianship and skill in choral repertoire make this very special indeed. The orchestra plays magnificently, the choirs sing as if their lives depended on it, and the numerous soloists are well chosen, with Erin Wall and Angela Meade the standouts. The recording captures the symphony’s scale as well as its complex spatial demands. A terrific account of a work whose performance still ranks as a major musical event.

Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s revelatory interpretation of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 8, recorded live at Walt Disney Concert Hall (30/31 May & 2 June 2019) will be released in June 2021. Their new album documents a landmark performance that brought the LA Philharmonic’s centennial season to a triumphant conclusion in 2019. Mahler’s extraordinary ‘Symphony of a Thousand’ spans a universe of emotions, channeled through everything from passages of intimate reflection to overwhelming outbursts of choral and orchestral sound.

Admirers of Karajan will probably own most or all of these symphony cycles from what was probably the pinnacle of the conductor's prolific career. However, if you are unfamiliar with Karajan's work, or well enough acquainted with it to desire further exploration, then this amazingly inexpensive anthology can be enthusiastically recommended. I purchased all of these sets when they came out in DG's previous mid-priced "Karajan Symphony Edition," and I can testify to their consistently oustanding quality, both as performances and as interpretations. As recordings, however, it must be admitted that the sound is of variable quality; sometimes admirably vivid and well balanced, but frequently tending toward harshness, even garishness–particularly in those which come from the early digital era (cf. Bruckner's symphonies 1-3). Too bad Universal didn't see fit to give this magnificent legacy a sonic facelift. Still, the performances are sufficiently worthy of your attention to warrant purchase regardless of these sonic limitations.