Composer: Gustav Mahler
Orchestra: Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Conductor: Sir Simon Rattle
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: BR Klassik
Catalogue: 900217
Release: 2024
Size: 1.52 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Symphony No. 6 in A minor ‘Tragic’
01. Allegro energico
02. Andante moderato
03. Scherzo. Wuchtig
04. Allegro energico
Among Simon Rattle’s first concert programmes as the new chief conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra was Gustav Mahler’s Sixth Symphony. The performances marked the beginning of a new chapter in Mahler interpretation, for Rattle, like his predecessors Jansons, Maazel and Kubelík, is an ardent admirer of the composer. BR-KLASSIK has now released the live recording of the concerts. Gustav Mahler’s Sixth Symphony is perhaps the darkest work he ever wrote – its nickname is “The Tragic”. And there is something almost destructive about the final movement. “But strangely enough,” says Simon Rattle, “it is also a very classical symphony. Yes, it is extreme, but for long stretches it is less wild than other works of his – although of course it does convey a harrowing message. But it’s like a lot of great works: there are always different ways of reading them. I’ve been conducting the Sixth for forty years now, and over time I’ve come to realise that it also contains hope.” Mahler composed his Sixth Symphony during the summers of 1903 and 1904 at his “composer’s cottage” in Maiernigg, near Klagenfurt. At the Vienna performance in 1907 (the third under his baton), he called it the “Tragic Symphony” – a nickname that soon became the stuff of legend. In particular, the darkness and devastating hopelessness of the finale – written at a time when he was at the high point of his life, both professionally and personally – are puzzling. Even his wife Alma could not quite explain the contradiction. As always, it was in and through music that Mahler came to terms with his experiences, exploring themes such as farewell, the meaning of existence, death, redemption, the afterlife, and love. More than other Mahler works, the Sixth Symphony is committed to “classical” symphonic form: it is in four movements and has no vocal parts. Despite all the liberties it takes, the opening movement follows sonata form. The Andante draws on the rondo form, as do the Scherzo and the Finale. The march, which sets the tone from the very first note of the first movement, plays a major role. Very unusually, even the Scherzo has march-like features and seems like a parodistic paraphrase of the opening, with a change of perspective. Simon Rattle concludes: “I think Mahler presents here the whole package of a colossal life – and that includes love and optimism.”
Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 in A minor comes with the subtitle “Tragic” and generally lives up to it in performance, with implacable militarism in the opening march and a truly grim conclusion. It has even been claimed that the work is prophetic of the First World War, but annotator Jörg Handstein here notes dryly that “[s]uch retrospective speculation cannot be substantiated,” and there are other ways to approach the work than drenching the whole thing in tension and panic. That is good news for conductor Simon Rattle, who recorded the work twice with the Berlin Philharmonic; there needed to be a reason for this 2024 release with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, recorded live in the autumn of 2023. Fortunately, Rattle delivers one; his reading here is no copy of the 2018 Berlin Philharmonic version. It is not exactly a light Mahler Sixth, but neither is it a frenetic one, with the big percussion strokes in the first movement and the finale straightforward rather than shattering and a deeply, lyrical slow movement. The all-important finale is a study in light and shade; there are moments of great intensity, but they give way to equilibrium. This, of course, is another way of looking at Tragedy, and the reading is persuasive even if it may not be what one is expecting. Bavarian Radio’s in-house label knows the ins and outs of Munich’s Gasteig well by now, and the sound captures Mahler’s always remarkable orchestration in full detail. This release will be of great interest to Rattle fans and those interested in a great conductor’s ongoing engagement with a complex work. This release made classical best-seller lists in early 2024.