Composer: Gustav Mahler
Performer: Jonas Kaufmann
Orchestra: Wiener Philharmoniker
Conductor: Jonathan Nott
Audio CD
Number of Discs: 1
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Sony
Size: 1.11 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
01. I. Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde
02. II. Der Einsame im Herbst
03. III. Von der Jugend
04. IV. Von der Schönheit
05. V. Der Trunkene im Frühling
06. VI. Der Abschied
Mahler’s masterpiece is subtitled as – A Symphony for Tenor and Alto (or Baritone) – and therefore traditionally two voices have sung the six movements of the work. However Jonas Kaufmann feels differently about this and wanted to sing both parts himself. In June this year he joined the Wiener Philharmoniker and conductor Jonathan Nott in a special concert in the Goldener Saal at the Musikverein in Vienna whereby he sang the entire work himself.
It’s actually the songs usually assigned to the contralto/baritone that come off best. Once I’d got my initial inevitable ‘Can he?’s and ‘Should he?’s out of the way, though, vocal technicalities weren’t really at the forefront of my mind: my overwhelming impression is of how well the orchestration and the texts suit Kaufmann, who’s always at his best when pouring out angry frustration at full throttle, or ruminating on dark nights of the soul.