Mahler Project
“Michael Tilson Thomas’s traversal of the symphonies of Mahler, recorded live with the San Francisco Symphony, is proving one of the most rewarding cycles of recent years...Here, too, there is a tangible sense of rediscovery, of hearing a familiar work refreshed with new insight.”
—London Telegraph
Mahler's Symphony No. 4
Mahler's Symphony No. 4, recorded live at Davies Symphony Hall in the concerts of September 24-28, 2003, is the most tuneful and upbeat of his symphonies. Its gloriously expansive slow movement offers a picture of heavenly terrain and its vocal finale, with soprano Laura Claycomb, is as freshly innocent as a folk tune.
Press Quotes
“After a terrific First Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas’ ongoing Mahler cycle with his San Francisco players really hits its stride with this latest release, one of the truly great recordings ever lavished on the Fourth…The performance’s sheer technical perfection, never mind the fact that it was edited from a series of live performances, attests to the exceptionally high standards prevailing in San Francisco at present, and the polish of the playing is complemented by abundant interpretive insight and an equally characterful response from the first chair players…This is by any standard an extraordinary achievement, and no one who loves Mahler or this symphony can afford to pass it by.”
—ClassicsToday.com
“The extended slow movement is the heart of the piece and of this performance, in which conductor and orchestra work on the same loving, majestic wavelength. The San Francisco Symphony sounds energized and sensitive, with glistening strings, fragrant winds and sterling brass affording Mahler marvelous cohesion and expressive variety. In the finale, soprano Laura Claycomb is an angelic presence, detailing the joys in heaven as if she really knows the ethereal terrain.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“The earlier releases in Tilson Thomas’s Mahler cycle have received lavish praise, and this account of the Fourth, recorded from live performances last autumn, is outstanding. I cannot remember hearing such a passionate yet cleanly played reading of the variations that constitute the huge slow movement”
—The Sunday Times (London)
Release Date: March 2, 2004
BIN: 821936-0004-2-7