Mahler: Symphony No. 4

Idioma disponível: inglês

The Mahlerian tradition of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra is not very old, neither Furtwängler nor Karajan conducted much of Gustav Mahler's music. The famous Berlin phalanx has since made up for it under its later artistic directors, starting with Claudio Abbado, whose exceptional performances in Berlin and Lucerne are well remembered. This new direction has just been confirmed with the release of a splendid box set on the Berliner Philharmoniker's own label. It presents Mahler's ten Symphonies in versions recorded over the last ten years under today's finest batons: Daniel Harding, Andris Nelsons, Gustavo Dudamel, Kirill Petrenko, Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitink and, of course Claudio Abbado who is chosen for the Adagio from Symphony N° 10.

The last individual publication is the pastoral Fourth conducted by Yannick Nézet-Seguin, a musician adored as much by the Berlin musicians as by all the orchestras he conducts. It has to be said that the Québecois has a very rare, capital sympathy and charisma, not to mention his exceptional musical sense. His vision mixes supreme lyricism with an elegance at every moment, in a majestic art that succeeds in reconciling extremes with a great modesty, until the final explosion of the wonderful Ruhevoll. Then the final Lied bursts out, a true hymn to nature or a slightly ironic evocation of a vision of a paradise that is more earthly than it seems, sung with naive wonder by the soprano Christine Karg.

This is a superb new recording that enriches the abundant discography of this happy symphony, so different from its nine sisters. © François Hudry/Qobuz