Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde

1	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
2	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
3	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
4	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
5	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
6	Das Lied von der Erde, fo
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
1.	Das Lied von der Erde, for alto (or baritone), tenor & orchestra 1:00:31
	Composed by Gustav Mahler
	Conducted by Pierre Boulez
	Performed by Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Violeta Urmana and Michael Schade

Barnes & Noble

Das Lied von der Erde is perhaps the most extraordinary of Mahler's works. Every one of his nine symphonies is utterly original, of course, but this orchestral song cycle is unprecedented both in its structure -- five relatively short songs balanced by an extended finale -- and its mixture of sumptuousness and delicacy. Conductor Pierre Boulez is famous for his mastery of orchestral balance and color, and he makes the most of Mahler's brilliant score. The opening song, "Das Trinklied von Jammer der Erde" (Drinking Song of the Earth's Sorrows), howls and sputters, with desperate whoops from the Vienna Philharmonic's horns. The second song, "Der Einsame in Herbst" (The Lonely Man in Autumn), leads us into another world: The violins' wandering melody and the oboe's lamenting call are traced as finely as the fragile outlines of a Chinese pen-and-ink landscape. Although the conductor's tempos occasionally seem faster than most modern interpretations, in fact they are closer to the speeds heard in the work's first recording, made in 1936 with Bruno Walter (who also conducted the world premiere performance in 1911) and the VPO. The orchestra has recorded this work several times since then, but never have they sounded so luminous and exquisite, and even if the singers were not as good as they are, this disc would be recommended for the magnificence of the orchestral playing alone. But the singing is very fine, indeed. Michael Schade's tenor has a gritty edge, and this suits the music well. He negotiates the treacherous leaps of the opening song and "Der Trunkene im Frühling" (The Drunkard in Spring) with assurance and finds just the right touch of lyrical tenderness in "Von der Jugend" (Of Youth). Violeta Urmana is equally impressive. Her contralto may lack the plangent plushness of Kathleen Ferrier's voice, but she has a beautiful instrument of her own with which she richly communicates the music's penetrating melancholy. This is unarguably the high point of Boulez's Mahler cycle, and even those Mahler enthusiasts who normally shy away from the conductor's unorthodox interpretations will find this recording persuasively poignant. Andrew Farach-Colton

Gramophone

So many recent recordings of Mahler's masterpiece have not measured up to the work's exigent demands, that it is a pleasure to hear one that does. This performance can be welcomed as something quite out of the ordinary, indeed a reading to place among the best the piece has ever received. Alan Blyth