A Tale of Two Mahlers
Posted by: Todd A on 03 December 2001
The concert consisted of three works: Mozart’s Ch'io mi scordi di te, non temer and 27th Piano Concerto, and Mahler’s Fourth. The Mozart works were very well done with pianist Vladimir Feltsman doing a superb job at the piano (so much so that I may have to hunt down some of his recordings). The Oregon Symphony is not renowned for doing classical period works – indeed, Mozart and Haydn works I have heard have been flat – but Otaka breathed life into the orchestra and the performance was splendid. That was a good sign. (Who am I kidding, what is the Oregon Symphony renowned for? Well there is that Resphigi under DePriest that just received a good amount of praise in Gramophone . . . )
The centerpiece was of course Mahler. I had obtained some fine seats: I was in the front row positioned (laterally) half-way between the Concert Master and a very attractive young first desk violinist. Volume was no problem. I was maybe six feet from the violins and maybe 12-15 feet from the conductor. I would hear everything. From the opening notes it was clear that this was a superior performance. I have never heard the orchestra as tight and controlled as at this concert: the strings were in top form, the winds perfect – and those little, endearing flute passages were so much more notable live – the brass blaring appropriately.
Otaka attended to every detail. In the second movement he cued the Concert Master for each pizzicato pluck on the high-tuned violin with fluid grace. In doing so, he maintained perfect continuity for the rest of the orchestra. He likewise controlled the percussion perfectly. The Adagio opened with such meltingly beautiful viola playing that one could just sense what was coming. The entire movement was played to near perfection – the only exception being the unfortunate violinist who had a bout of coughing. Various members of the orchestra appeared to be very moved by the performance. The massive coda was near ear-splitting in volume, the timpani sounding as though the skins might break. The finale also elicited superlative orchestral playing. The soprano – Frances Lucey, I’d never heard of her before – did an admirable if not timeless job. Overall, I left the concert extremely pleased, convinced I had heard the best orchestral concert I’ve attended since Eteri Andjaparidze did a stellar Emperor a few years back. I also learned that I generally set my volume on such big works to probably 6th or 7th row volume. (And don’t get me started on the complete absence of any “soundstaging” as defined in the hi-fi press.)
Why the title of the thread, those of you who read this far may be wondering? Well I always like to prep myself for concerts by listening to different versions of the works I will hear before attending the concerts. This time in the week preceding the show I had listened to Bernstein conducting the NYPO on Sony, Rattle conducting the CBSO on EMI, and the morning of the concert, Otto Klemperer’s 1961 recording with Schwarzkopf as soloist. The Klemperer is my favorite recording – at least of the ones I have heard – so I figured why not listen to the best before the show. How did Otaka compare? Very favorably. In fact, I would say that he might even have had the edge at the beginning of the third movement. In the first and second movements Klemperer delivers more gravity and impact, and the playing and singing in the finale is better. Overall, Klemperer does the better job – expecting Otaka to best one of Mahler’s pupils is a bit unfair – but I actually like the performance as much if not more than the Bernstein! No foolin’. Let me put it this way: if what I heard were available on CD I’d pay full price in a heartbeat, coughing included, and I would listen to it regularly. Unfortunately the powers that be did not record the concert I attended. The future looks potentially bright in the Pacific Northwest.