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Review by mwgfrg October 28, 2011 (5 of 5 found this review helpful)
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Performance:  |
| The Berlin Philharmonic seems to have made more and better recordings of the Mahler 9th than any other orchestra, and at least five--Barbirolli, the two Karajans, Bernstein and Abbado--are considered great ones. I have all five, and certainly would agree with that conclusion. I have read several reviews concluding that this Rattle recording is a major advance on his earlier Vienna recording--definitely--but not quite on the same level as the recordings listed above--maybe. But while that judgment may be fairly easy to make listening to the CD version, which I liked but did not especially love, it is hard to be that sure after listening to the SACDs. There may be SACD recordings with wider dynamic range (Chailly) or more precise instrumental positioning (Nott), but none of them seem to me to put you in the hall, listening to a real performance, the way this one does. The depth, perspective and sense of the hall are truly impressive. So is the playing and richness of orchestral sound: I don't believe even Karajan got better articulation from the Berlin. Certainly the tempos are on the slow, stately side. If you like Gilbert or Gergiev, this may not be for you. But I am pretty certain that I will listen to this set more than any other in the future.
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