I love Mahler. Like Strauss, it’s the kind of music that the modern string player (or any instrumentalist in a symphony orchestra, for that matter) has trained for their entire life. The technical and musical demands are many, especially in this – perhaps the most popular – wonderfully complex and exciting symphony, the Fifth. We had our first rehearsals on the piece today, and I’ll fill you in on my thoughts as the week goes on. For now, here’s a nice way to study up on the symphony before the concerts arrive – there is a streaming performance (one of the best available, imho) of Claudio Abbado conducting the Lucerne Festival Orchestra (essentially an all-star orchestra of the best players in Europe) that is available for free to Amazon Prime members. So, put that $80/year to good use and get yourself some fine culture!
Here’s the link, and below is a trailer from YouTube of the performance video.
4 replies on “Are you ready for mahler 5?”
I’m looking forward to the concert. Both for the Mahler, which is great, and for the Haydn; I’m coming to a new appreciation for Haydn, these days.
I do have a question I’ve always wanted to ask, though. The concert is a performance, and you typically do three – a Sat eve, Sun matinee, and Mon eve. Is there any consistency in which slot gets the best performance?
Is the Sat, first performance, more exciting because it is fresher, or maybe less so because the orchestra is uncertain?
Is the Mon performance improved by the run that preceded it, or have you grown tired of it by then?
Is the orchestra pretty consistent, show to show, or are the factors that make for better performances more random and not really tied to the day or order of the performances?
I wish there was a hard and fast answer. Some programs are freshest on opening night, but they tend to be very ‘standard’ programs which consist of works that the orchestra plays often. Programs with less commonly played works tend to improve each night. This week, we’re playing Friday night in Salem (at Willamette University), so the Mahler, which we’ve done only once before with Carlos (and with James DePreist quite a few years ago, in the time I’ve been here) will have had a shakedown cruise before our first Portland performance. Either way, you shouldn’t be disappointed either night you decide to come!
Really enjoyed Saturday’s performance. I have another question for you – did I see Alban Gerhardt in with the rest of the cellos for the Mahler, and is that typical? Usually the soloists don’t sit in for the rest of the performance, but is that part of the artist-in-residence gig?
Thanks! No, that’s not part of the artist-in-residence gig, it’s something that Alban has done since his first appearance with the orchestra nearly 10 years ago. He loves playing in the section, and the section loves having him there!