"Janos Gereben" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>"Lucky San Francisco, with a population of 777,777 (give or take a few),
>is the smallest city in the world with the best Mahler performances......
>
>"In the current all-Mahler recording series by Michael Tilson Thomas and
>the San Francisco Symphony, there have been some unforgettable experiences,
>such as the post-9/11 Sixth Symphony, a spookily brilliant Fifth, and a
>glorious Ninth.  Tonight, Davies Hall witnessed a grand Seventh Symphony
>- with full recording facilities in place to capture the live performance."

Lucky San Francisco indeed.  But last Sunday I heard Mahler 4 played by
the Philharmonia under Ashkenazy in the Royal Festival Hall in London
(population a few million) and it seemed pretty good to me.  The relatively
new and unknown (to me anyway) Swedish soprano Klara Ek was poignant in
the last movement.  Put it this way.  Joshua Bell was soloist in the
first part of the concert, but even so it is the singing of Klara Ek
that seems the highlight of the concert: that must mean something.  That
said, I must sample the MTT series on disk.  Is the recording of the
live performance of no.7 going to join the series?

George Marshall
Cheshire, England