Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde (Live)

Album review

Some divide recordings of Mahler's symphonic song cycle Das Lied von der Erde into "subjective" (Leonard Bernstein, and more recently, Simon Rattle) and "objective" (Pierre Boulez) readings. Perhaps conductor Vladimir Jurowski finds a middle road in this version, recorded live with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin at the Philharmonie in 2018. Jurowski contributes an extended note in which he argues that Mahler found a new "lyrical" mode in Das Lied von der Erde, in contradistinction to a "heroic" Beethovenian mode, and his reading broadly reflects this view. Many fine points emerge in the score, but this is due to a relaxed mood and space for details rather than to any attempt to be microscopic about the work. In Jurowski's hands, Das Lied von der Erde is more an orchestral song cycle than a symphony, with each of the five movements taking on its own flavor. There's much more to be said about Jurowski, and much to be said in favor of tenor Robert Dean Smith, who confidently takes on the borderline singable first movement. The best of all here is Sarah Connolly's run in the epic "Der Abschied," which in its deliberate long line both fits well with Jurowski's overall concept and is just sensuously, tragically gorgeous on its own, likely destined to become one of the highlights of her later career. PentaTone's superbly clear live sound seals the deal on a very fine Das Lied von der Erde.

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