A *very* informal report on Chailly's new Mahler 8th.

There's no escaping that the opening is slow.  And wow--Mahler's special
drum makes quite a noise on the word "spiritus!" I still feel an
exhilaration, and perhaps we can call what Chailly and Co achieves here
a "gargantuan crackle." (Remember those revolving spheres *do* look like
they're moving slowly from a distance.) Unsurprisingly, one can hear a
lot of orchestral colors, exquisite phrasing, shading, articulation and
counterpoint otherwise missed.  And those antiphonal choir effects!  Cheap
seduction at the expense of "true old-school musicianship?" Naw.  Chailly's
attention to detail is as gratifying as Sinopoli's, (listen to the
children's choir glorias towards the end!) yet IMHO Chailly maintains
forward momentum and a grip on architecture in ways that Sinopoli often
falls short.  The soloists, including Jane Eaglen and Ben Heppner are
(mostly) easy to listen to, sounding lyrical and operatic by turns, and
they are recorded at a comfortable distance.  (Very thrilling solo octave
glorias by the sopranos in the final section of Part 1.  No scoops.)

Just as Chailly's tempo narrowly avoids stalling, the recording IMHO stays
just one electron away from being too cavernous.  One imagines vast spaces,
yet detail and layering is adequately yet discreetly caught, for my tastes.
(Perhaps a little more bite in the thick sections.)

Don't tell anyone, but often my mind wanders in Part 2 until we get
to Doctor Marianus.  No so with the Chailly.  There is a celebration
of instrumental sound for sound's sake here, (luminous flutes, gossamer
strings), that I find similarly satisfying in HIP performances; a bonus
above and beyond the musical argument.  My second favorite moment, after
the finale of Part 1, is when the choir rises up around Dr.  Marianus
just a little beyond, "Jungfrau...." Heppner positively glows here, (what
happened in Part 1?), yet the pacing is a tad broad as we approach the
ecstatic climax on the work "Konigin" for my taste.  I must mention again
the luminous beauty of the strings in the orchestral interlude and choral
music that follows.

A glamorous Blicket Auf.  As Mahler deconstructs the romantic
voluptuousness that follows, bringing in that great bitonality, and odd
instrumental combinations, once again I feel myself reveling in the sound
as if for the first time.  The mystical chorus achieves an exaltedness
similar to Tennstedt's, yet Chailly maintains a weightiness that I missed
in the Tennstedt.  (The first solo floating soprano line sounds a little
thin unfortunately.) Chailly doesn't fool with the pacing as things draw
to a conclusion--everything moves irresistibly forward.  No brass flubs,
no loss of energy at the false climax before the great gong, bass drum and
piano tremolo.  And I can't resist gushing over those final three cymbal
crashes...with a phrase break first!

John Smyth
Sacramento, Ca