Mahler : Symphony No. 7

Album review

« Recorded live at the Barbican in March, Valery Gergiev's performance of the Seventh Symphony as part of his complete Mahler cycle with the London Symphony is typical of his no-holds-barred approach to a composer who himself always goes to the ultimate limits. Even by Mahler's standards, this work explores a huge range of emotion, while highlighting his tendency to undercut and contradict his own material. The weird and grotesque constantly subvert beauty and aspiration in this thrilling interpretation, right through to the ice-cold shudder that precedes the final chord.» (George Hall, Independent on Sunday, 10th August 2008)

« This is a terrific, gripping performance from Gergiev and the LSO of Mahler s Seventh Symphony, an edge-of-the-seat experience of a work that can often be elusive. Gergiev's starting point is to get the detail right. No stressed accent is ever underplayed, no subsidiary counterpoint or detail of colour goes unnoticed. Helped in these live performances by a highly energised orchestra eager to display its finesse, he brings an almost palpable darkness, fear and mystery to the three central movements, giving an impression, in the central scherzo, of hot, tormenting laser lights darting in from all angles, and imbues the outer movements with an almost frenzied momentum.» (Stephen Pettitt, The Sunday Times, 17th August, 2008)

Details of original recording : Recorded live at the Barbican, London, March 2008