Mahler expanding my cd collection

[MrBear]

I was wondering the same.
The Bernstein/NYPO set (released here on a label called "Carnegie Hall Presents" but consisting of excellent remasterings of the old Columbia set) is wonderful.
The sonic refurbishments are a vast improvement over previous incarnations.
I never explored Bernstein's DG set beyond 1, 7, and 9 all of which I own. In all 3 cases I favor LB's earlier thoughts, though the later versions are interesting in their own right. There is no right answer on this, but I sometimes wonder if in his later versions, LB was self consciously striving to do something different
than in his earlier, path breaking accounts.
Walter's set should be self re
commending. It is very cheap, the remasterings are terrific (particularly the 1947 5th), and then the question would be if you wish to supplement it with the many other extent WAlter recordings, many of which are concert recordings of variable sonic lustre.
Szell's 4th is my favorite 4th and has been well served in earlier CD incarnations. The 6th was given the deluxe sonic treatment by Sony and is well worth your time, as per previous posters.

Thanks for recommending the remastered Bernstein will get a copy when feeling a bit more with it .

I assume you refer to the Sony Walter box not really looked at it before but as its so cheap will probably get it Definitely looking to get the other Walter performances to.

Thanks for eveyones replies. What do I want from a Mahler performance is definately some passion. Two performances of 1 I have enjoyed recently are Inbals and Semkov with Warsaw PI which has been on through the night a couple of times

Have ordered both 4 & 6 by Szell just under a fiver total

Very Interested in hearing some of the Kondrashin

[umslopogaas]

The only complete set on my shelves is Solti and the Chicago SO, on Decca. I know Solti is not to everone's taste - detractors find him too "hard driven" or similar - but I like his readings and the sound is superb. I'm not sure if you could say there was passion in his interpretations, but there is certainly excitement.

[amateur51]

I would recommend also reading the late Tony Duggan's survey of various versions of the Mahler symphonies. He died in 2012 so you need to take that into account perhaps but I've found him to be a sure guide to some marvels

http://www.musicweb-international.com/Mahler/index.html

Get better soon, Mr Bear and Nachtigall - it's a rotten time of year to be poorly with so little sunshine to lift your spirits, so turn to music to do the trick

[Beef Oven!]

This is the 6th - worth every penny - a great recording of a live performance, though you'd never think so - no coughs, bangs, etc.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_st?keywords=szell+mahler&qid=1388952317&rh=n%3A229816%2Ck%3Aszell+mahler&sort=price

Buy now, is all I will say.

Totally agree. My introduction to the work many years ago. Then came Karajan, and then, and then.........!

[Beef Oven!]

I would recommend also reading the late Tony Duggan's survey of various versions of the Mahler symphonies. He died in 2012 so you need to take that into account perhaps but I've found him to be a sure guide to some marvels

http://www.musicweb-international.com/Mahler/index.html

Get better soon, Mr Bear and Nachtigall - it's a rotten time of year to be poorly with so little sunshine to lift your spirits, so turn to music to do the trick

I always found MusicWeb to be very useful, but only visited intermittently and I seem to have stopped altogether now.

This is a really good item and a reason to pop the link into my favourites!

Thanks for putting it our way

[mathias broucek]

Or else there's later versions of No.1 (the "legendary" NDR live one in Amsterdam, EMI, Kondrashin died later the same evening...)

Not easy to track down for sensible money, sadly...

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Are any of the other none dg cbs/sony Bernstein cds worth getting?

I rather like the Decca VPO/Bernstein Das Lied.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I rather like the Decca VPO/Bernstein Das Lied.

- with Fischer-Dieskau in the Ferrier role

[Barbirollians]

Ludwig and Wunderlich with Klemperer and Janet Baker with Raymon Leppard live much my favourite Das Lieds outside the Ferrier/Walter although the live Fassbaender/Araiza /Giulini on Orfeo is a cut above their DG account.

[HighlandDougie]

Why not try Kondrashin with the Leningrad Phil/Moscow Phil? KK may give you a few shocks but he's never dull! .... It's all good!

Having recently found the Melodiya LPs of the 9th among a pile in the attic (which I have no recollection of buying) and given them a spin (no, definitely not dull and, to my ears, rather more interesting than, say, Karajan or Bernstein), JLW's seductive sales technique has broken my re-resolved determination to buy no more Mahler CDs. A (cheap) copy of the Melodiya box ordered (from France) - and a not-so-cheap copy of the NDR Klassik 1st (from the US). So that's another nine discs to add to the pile. And then there's the Scherchen 1st and 2nd in the Westminster Legacy box (which arrived earlier today) ....... I should simply stop reading this thread.

[Dave2002]

And then there's the Scherchen 1st and 2nd in the Westminster Legacy box (which arrived earlier today) ....... I should simply stop reading this thread.

Ah, so you succumbed to the Westminster offering. Do let us know more as you work through it. No hurry, but would be good to know how you get on.

[Beef Oven!]

Having recently found the Melodiya LPs of the 9th among a pile in the attic (which I have no recollection of buying)

It came with the house, surely?

[Bryn]

If you opt for the Melodiya Kondrashin Mahler box, you get two versions of the vocal movements of the 3rd. One in Russian and an alternative recording in German, made some 14 years after the main recording. In order to fit in the German versions the CD break comes after the second movement, thus somewhat disrupting Part 2 of the symphony.

[jayne lee wilson]

Oddly enough Bryn on this 2004 boxed issue (the one with the aforementioned William Blake illustrations, Russian-only CD booklet-covers) Disc 1 of No.3 has the first three movements (up to the animals) and Disc 2 the last three, with the German versions of O Mensch and Es Sungen AFTER that as tracks 4 and 5...

[Bryn]

Oddly enough Bryn on this 2004 boxed issue (the one with the aforementioned William Blake illustrations, Russian-only CD booklet-covers) Disc 1 of No.3 has the first three movements (up to the animals) and Disc 2 the last three, with the German versions of O Mensch and Es Sungen AFTER that as tracks 4 and 5...

Oops, just checked. My mistake, and at least there is three quarters of a bar's rest before the double bar line at the end of the third movement. The layout does have the advantage of permitting the programming of the German option, if desired.