Mahler - Symphony 5 [Ozawa-Boston Symphony Orchestra]Now here's a very nice experience, Ozawa conducting my favourite Mahler Symphony, this is the first time i've listened to this disc, i've heard rumblings that Ozawa is a poor Conductor, and from others that he is one of their favourites, the jury is out in my corner, and i certainly want to listen to more of him, especially after listening to this today, he has a very individual way with things, on this Symphony he seems somewhat slow, but he brings out detail which other Conductors might miss, but sometimes at the expense of the long term flow of things, like a tour guide that keeps stopping to point things out, in this sense i find him a lot like Paavo Jarvi, some of his ideas sound strange, and yet... very interesting and enlightening.
Seiji Ozawa is now 75, recently has had health problems, i believe he did a full Mahler cycle for the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the early nineties, and this Symphony was recorded in 1990, a live recording, maybe a little coughing between movements, and warm applause at the end, i like the booklet cover a lot, a fine shot of Ozawa in action [photo by Michiharu Okubo], really sharp considering it's an indoor shot without camera flash, and quite sharp too.
I liked the second movement the most, but i would like to talk about little moments which stand out for me in the whole Symphony,
First Movement, the opening trumpet fanfare is enlightening, i really like this interpretation a lot, the very opening 'seems' to be taken slightly too fast [0:00-0:22], but on subsequent hearings it seems fine, and then right afterwards comes the later part of the solo trumpet fanfare which is more sing-song [0:23-0:30], where the trumpeter lets the sound ring out that little more, then after the percussion crash, the trumpet cries out in a slightly wailing tone, as if he's pained [0:34-0:42], a really good effect, i like this opening.
Second Movement, this is the movement that i found to be more full of 'Ozawa-isms', there's this dark and sad lament on the low strings [4:20-5:44], with a barely audible low grumble drum roll in the background, very well sustained, and hard to pull off i guess, the loud climax towards the end of the movement is done just a shade too slow [11:52+], and it misses some of the power here, i really like Dohnanyi on Decca here, a more powerful purpose, really grabs you, then a little later there's this mock scream / laugh from the trumpet! [13:23-13:25], it's truly excellent, i love it, and then right at the very end, there seems to be these 'cackles & sniggers', starting with the 'cat' violins [14:28-14:45], but moving onto the brass and woodwind, some of it quite mocking, but a very nice touch all the same.
Third Movement, i like the way the sparse pizzicato strings are done [6:49-7:39], slow and precise to begin with, really making a statement, also they really do stand out, nicely caught in the recording, and the bassoon work is a perfect compliment [7:06-7:11], and the oboe too [7:27-7:36], a passage laid out with real care for detail and effect.
Fourth Movement, at 11:20 the whole thing is too slooow!, and somewhat self indulgent, but Ozawa sustains it well.
Fifth Movement, the way the trumpets 'rise' / explode at the end [13:28+], and the tying up of the last pages of the Symphony, very well done indeed, a nice addition to my Mahler 5 discography.
Here's Leonard Bernstein conducting the second movement on YouTube.
