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Customer Rating: 
Summary: Intellectual performance exactly calculated
Comment: I did not know Gergiev was able to do the intellectual performance exactly calculated. For instance, the polyphony of the first movement, in which polyphony is effective, doesn't put on, and I hear it neatly. I heard it as there was a lot of greasiness when I only listened to the first and the continuing second movement, but, after that, it was corrected by the fourth. I mean, the first movement was noticed to be made the best use of advance hint to the fourth movement.
In Gergiev's performance I do not feel the prospect and the way of talking of Bernstein's Mahler. But he has something that takes the place of it, and I think that he gives a story to music by different way from Bernstein's style. I feel it very strong in the fourth movement. It might be Moderation. I feel the fourth movement of Gergiev controlled very delicately.
Recorded in 2008.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: An out-of-sorts Mahler 1st from Gergiev
Comment: By conducting an entire Mahler cycle in one year -- and releasing CDs of the live performances hot off the presses -- Gergiev ran the risk of letting certain works slide by. This happens here in a Mahler First that varies between bland, slapdash, and quirky. Being new to Mahler, at least on disc, Gergiev also comes from a fairly blank Mahler tradition in Russia. He overcame that deficit in earlier releases of the Sixth and Seventh, but the First finds him in an unsympathetic mood. He impatiently strides through the forest morning in the opening movement, evoking no mystery at all and breaking into transitions with abrupt, curt tempo changes.
The second movement dances for once instead of lumbering, but beyond that it feels uninvolved, as does the third movement parody of a huntsman's funeral, despite some sharp rustic touches in the "Jewish" section, as I supose we now think of it. The finale, where you'd expect Gergiev to soar, is fairly tame and over-detailed, until we arrive at the singing second subject, where he finally finds his touch. But those glowing measures amount to a small portion of the overall work. The LSO plays beautifully, although I don't sense much involvement from them, either. The sonics, as in previous releases, are clear but a bit too distant for maximum impact.
I'm a committed Gergiev admirer and celebrate his arrival in London, but there are greater Mahler Firsts in abundance, beginning with Claudio Abbado and Leonard Bernstein, both on DG.
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Summary: A Mahler 1st Symphony Of Great Clarity and Emotion from Gergiev & LSO
Comment: Having demonstrated that he is among our foremost interpreters of Shostakovich, eminent conductor Valery Gergiev has embarked on a potentially great Mahler symphony cycle with the London Symphony Orchestra as its new principal conductor for the orchestra's LSO Live label. A musical journey that shouldn't surprise long-time listeners and admirers of Gergiev's conducting, especially when Shostakovich expressed his own artistic debt to Mahler's genius for melody and orchestration throughout his fourteen symphonies. Gergiev's exceptional interpretation of the Mahler 1st Symphony is one that shall be remembered for its great clarity and emotional depth. All Gergiev asks of his new orchestra is superb intonation and fidelity to Mahler's intentions; needless to say we are treated to a sonic spectacular quite removed from the overwrought emotional richness of a late career Leonard Bernstein; instead, in its crisp, steady unfolding, Gergiev's interpretation most closely resembles Bernard Haitink's in its clarity, sonic richness and fidelity to Mahler. Under the exceptional technical stewardship of LSO Live producer James Mallinson and his team, live Barbican concert performances recorded earlier this year (January 2008) truly resemble most closely a well-miked studio recording.
Gergiev adheres to brisk tempi throughout the score, emphasizing the vibrant qualities of the lieder melodies which Mahler borrowed from his own songs, especially heard in the main theme of the first movement, which is taken from the second song in Mahler's "Songs of a Wayfarer" four song cycle. The second movement is a brash, bold landler (a close, but coarse, country kin to the refined Viennese waltz) that borrows a theme from an earlier song. In stark contrast, the third movement is a triumphant funeral march, whose core melody is the familiar Frere Jacques tune from childhood. Finally this too passes in a concluding fourth movement that briefly revisits the main themes from the preceding three in a musical maelstrom, before concluding in a hopeful brass fanfare of almost Wagnerian proportions. It is truly one of Gergiev's great gifts as a conductor that he coaxes refined, quite elegant, playing from the winds and brass, as well as the strings. Without a doubt this latest recording of the Mahler 1st Symphony promises to be a serious contender as a definitive recording for classical music fans, worthy of comparison to relatively recent recordings made not only by Bernard Haitink, but Pierre Boulez, David Zinman, and Claudio Abbado too.
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Summary: Terrific!
Comment: Valery Gergiev, like Carlos Kleiber, is considered famous for his painstakingly ingenious phrasing. No where is that claim better evidenced than in this CD. I had once reviewed MTT's wonderful interpretation of this very same symphony, extolling his CD as a wonderful interpretation, however Gergiev and the entire LSO have taken my breath away. This interpretation is far more directed and pointed than MTT's while retaining the same level of exactness from the performers. Clearly Gergiev shows us that he has an idea of where this symphony is going, and just what is important to that telos. Especially impressive is the last movement. Gergeiv here brings to life not only that exultation that a symphony is a world unto itself, but also catches the idea of being a thunderstorm and battle between hero and tribulations.
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![Mahler: Symphony No. 1 [Hybrid SACD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41tyrh2VVAL._SL160_.jpg)
