Ed Zubrow asked about recordings of the Mahler 8.  Mark Shanks responded
by suggesting the Segerstam or possibly the Davis.  My two cents: the
recorded balance in the Davis sounds recessed or somehow odd to me, and the
female voices aren't too stunning (Sweet in particular isn't).  I liked
Segerstam a lot the first time I heard it, liked it a bit the second time,
but the more I heard it, the more the odd percussion effects at the end
bothered me, and the more it sounded almost amplified from small forces
in an effort to fill the Albert Hall.

My overall favorite remains Sinopoli, in generally magnificent sound
that reflects much of what the work sounded like live in San Francisco --
thrilling, that is.  Studer has a couple of flattish exposed high notes
that can easily bother you, but the rest of the singing is finer than any
version save Solti, and the recording is nothing near as harsh or blaring.

Bill Drewett
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