The Greatest Recordings EVER! Mahler: Symphony No. 10

Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (ed. Cooke). Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Kurt Sanderling (cond.) Berlin Classics

[gavingriffiths]

It's worth bearing in mind that there is (probably?) more Mahler in the 10th symphony, than there is Mozart in the Requiem- and yet posh conductors, who shy snootily away from the 10th, have no difficulty with the Requiem. Makes no sense..

[Rozsaphile]

Discovered the 10th via Ormandy and have loved it ever since, in various versions. Once heard Sanderling (then unknown to me) guest conduct this the NY Philharmonic in this work and loved it then. Can't recall any specifics. Ultimately, I DON'T CARE how much is authentic Mahler and how much is added. The music itself is what matters, and it always moves me.

[Kragsbjerg]

I cannot live without the flute solo in the ending 😊 I would argue that had Cooke's performing version been a completed work by a lesser composer, it would have been regarded as a masterpiece.

[mikewinter]

What a great point that Mahler was in the prime of his life musically when he wrote this. With the slow, somber slide into oblivion of the 9th most interpretations continue in that vein - great to know there is an after-vigor.

[petterw]

I was listening to this performance with headphones, and the dissonant chord was like someone piercing my brain. Other conductors make it softer, but Sanderling goes for the kill.

[brianburtt]

YES! I love that Sanderling Mahler triptych. One of my can't-live-without (sets of) recordings. (Just a personal cheer from the sidelines for this recording.)

[igorgregoryvedeltomaszewsk]

On the occasion here's an anecdote on the topic of Sanderlings improvements on Cookes performance version:
German born conductor Berthold Goldschmidt who had worked intensely with Cooke to complete the first performance version was also a personal friend of Kurt Sanderling from the prewar years.
As Sanderling during a meeting with Goldschmidt showed him the score with his own additions of percussion parts Goldschmidt felt a bit offended and remarked:
"But with these parts added it will also make the listener think of Shostakovich!"
To which Sanderling answered:
"Exactly!! I want to show the moment where Shostakovich was born!"
Anyway, Sanderling's recording is a must have. Shattering, gripping and "realistic Mahler".
And not to forget Ormandy's.
A performance one cannot shake off that easily. It haunts you...

[stackedactor]

The versions other than Cooke all try to add material that isn't there, while the Cooke version keeps the extrapolation basically non-existent.

Simply put, Cooke respected Mahler more than his own need for glory .... and somewhat paradoxically, Cooke gained a bit of glory by not seeking it.

PS thanks for the previous Ormandy Mahler 10 recommendation. Boy was Eugene an amazing conductor!!!

[martinhaub]

When you examine the Mahler sketches it's amazing that anyone could decipher them well enough to make any completion at all. But of all the versions, you're absolutely correct: Cooke rules. Carpenter should get the boot!

[petertaplin]

Are there enough examples for you to do a talk on 'Completions'?
People always moan about Alfano's completion of Turandot, but its become so familiar now that I can't imagine another one. But I remember hearing the opening of the Elgar/Payne 3rd Symphony for the first time with those 'oriental' open 5ths and thinking "Elgar would NEVER have written that!"

[ericnagamine]

an emotionally searing reading. Plus, there's an even better SACD issue from Japan.

[bobflagg]

Ormandy/Philadelphia (Sony Japan remastered & should be in Ormandy Columbia Stereo II box Feb 2025) has the edge with more existential melancholy conveyed by searing string virtuosity and more intensity overall. The first and last movements are among the most supreme moments in Mahler.

[barryfields-hv]

Hi Dave...thanks to you I obtained both Gielen and Chailly...I enjoy them both...Is Sanderling FAR AND AWAY (in your opinion) that much superior, interpretation, orchestration and sonics? Thanks for being there....your video critiques are always my virtual masterclass.

[jayck]

I’ve always liked the Wigglesworth one with Melbourne. I like the sonics and the performance… and I love the glissando in the strings at the end. I have no idea whether that’s in the score or not, but whatever, it works for me. 😊

[vanhowell]

I'm always astounded when a relatively obscure recording I've discovered on my own through years of diligent searching (I'd never even heard of Sanderling when I came across this one) gets the nod from Dave. I'd already stopped listening to my dozens of Mahler recordings acquired from 1965 on, but still made a trip to hear every live performance I could afford, and was looking and looking for a recording of the one Mahler work that still did it for me. even in imperfect recordings. This Tenth was it. Right up there with Fricsay's Verdi Requiem and Kegel's Missa Solemnis. (I'm still waiting for Dave to figure out that Furtwangler's second complete Ring is incomparably coherent and perfectly balanced, leaving all other versions sounding cheap and trashy. I have no doubt his discernment will bring him home to this recoding too, eventually.)

[HYPRKNECT]

Yo en mi caso, las interpretaciones de Gielen y Sanderling andan por ahí. Excepto ese acorde disonante. Allí Sanderling lleva la delantera, junto con la acústica. Gielen, lleva por la delantera en consistencia y el humor intencionado en la sinfonía. Además de la característica que este director, tiene el expresionismo y el nihilismo de su lado.

[davidmayhew]

To me the tenth is as unique to the ninth as his third is to the second. Does that make sense. He doesn't just do a ninth 11. He uses a different palette. More lean compared to the ninth's denser textures. He was only 50 ( almost 51 ) but he knew he was dying. I think someday someone will come up with a better solution.

I did not like the Sanderling on first listen. Based on your recommendation I gave it a couple more chances and am coming around to your view. It is definitely one that all Mahler fans should check out.