In a previous posting I discussed Mahler's late song cycle cum symphony cum tone poem, Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth), with some attention to some of the many recordings of the work that currently grace the catalog.
As of today (September 9), the San Francisco Symphony's new recording with soloists Stuart Skelton and Thomas Hampson, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas, is available for sale.
I'd like to discuss the recording a bit, not as a review — I just don't do reviews, period — but as a few observations about this latest addition to the MTT/SFS Mahler series.
I am restricting my discussion to just the second lied out of the six: Der Einsame im Herbst (The Lonely One in Autumn), in order to focus in on a few details.
Das Lied von der Erde is a setting of poems from various Chinese authors, all of the texts modified extensively from their originals via translations into French and German, as well as Mahler's own input. Mahler wrote the work in the aftermath of a series of personal tragedies, imbuing Das Lied with a father's grief for a lost child, and regrets over his own mortality.
Der Einsame im Herbst paints a picture of autumn as a metaphor for the heart's weariness. The first two of four stanzas depict a somber landscape of cool colors and wintry chill:
Autumn mists float blue over the lake;
Covered with frost are all the grasses;
It is as if an artist had sprinkled jade dust
Over the delicate blossoms.
The sweet odor of the flowers has vanished:
A cold wind bends down their stems.
Soon the wilted, golden leaves
Of the lotus blossoms will drift on the water.
Fading nature sets the stage for:
My heart is weary. My little lamp
Has gone out with a sputter; I am put in mind of sleep.
I come to you, dear resting-place!
Yes, give me rest, I have need of refreshment!
I weep much in my times of loneliness.
The autumn in my heart persists too long.
Sun of love, will you shine no longer,
To gently dry my bitter tears?
Qian Qi's original bears witness to the many changes the text underwent on its journey to Das Lied:
Autumn sky, jade-like frost drifting
Northerly wind carries lotus fragrance
With love, weaving till the lonely lamp fades
Wipe tears, fond memory, long cold night
Eaves edge, blue clouds pure like water
Rising moon, roosting birds caw; geese soar.
Whose young wife is weaving love birds on her loom?
Deeply concealed by silk curtain and inlaid screen
Listening to falling leaves by the white jade window
Pity the woman, chilled and alone without company.
Mahler set Der Einsame im Herbst as chamber music, despite employing immense orchestral forces. Individual soloists weave in and out of the tapestry, either playing entirely alone, or in partnership with another soloist (including the vocalist). This renders the movement particularly intriguing for devotées of orchestra playing, given the opportunity it presents to hear the principals on extended display. For instance:
- Oboist William Bennett throughout, but particularly at the opening and closing of the movement; if you have the Reiner/Chicago recording, you can set Bill alongside the legendary Ray Still.
- Bassoonist Stephen Paulson immediately following ich hab' Erquikkung not (I have need of refreshment), and again after the final words um meine bittern Tränen mild auf zu trocknen (and dry my bitter tears), where he is joined by Bennett for the movement's conclusion.
- Clarinetist Carey Bell at Herbstnebel wallen blälich überm See (Autumn mists float blue over the lake).
- Timothy Day, flute, three bars before Carey's entrance, and again at Meine kleine Lampe erlosch mit Knistern (my little lantern has gone out with a sputter).
- Principal horn Robert Ward at Ich weine viel in meinen Einsam keiten (I weep much in my times of loneliness).
- Michael Grebanier, cello, at Bald werden die verwelkten, gold'nen Blätter (Soon the wilted, golden blooms...)
- Concertmaster Alexander Barantschik at Ich komm' zu dir, traute Ruhe stätte (I come to you, dear resting place).
Der Einsame is distinguished by its many tempo changes, none of them fundamental shifts but each a variant on a basic pulse. Mahler wasn't one for militaristic precision with tempo markings; as a conductor he knew full well that an artist will seek, and find, the proper tempi for a work.
Therefore his initial "tempo" is Etwas schleichend. Ermütet: "Somewhat creeping; fatigued." Changes might be marked as Etwas zurückhaltend (holding back somewhat) or Fließend (flowing). It's all quite vague and therefore capable of limitless interpretation.
There is a great deal to be gained from listening carefully to a conductor's handling of the many tempo shifts during this movement; no two performers ever approach them quite the same way. At the risk of becoming a bit review-ish, I will say that MTT's navigation impresses me as masterful, sustaining the integrity of the line throughout.
The solo part can be performed by either contralto or baritone, but historically the contralto has tended to predominate. The new SFS rendition boasts baritone Thomas Hampson, who has recorded the work once before with Simon Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony.
I spent some time listening to Hampson's 1995 performance with Rattle in comparison to this new recording from September of 2007. Twelve years have seen significant changes in Hampson's approach.
In general, this newer performance is characterized by an overall loosening of the melodic line in favor of a nearly parlando, or speaking style, highly effective given the hushed intimacy of the text, featuring indications such as ohne Ausdruck, "without expression". Hampson definitely applies a parlando style to the Rattle recording, but in 1995 he was apparently more of a stickler for exact rhythm.
Let me offer an example. The opening line Herbstnebel wallen bläulich überm See (Autumn mists float blue over the lake) is marked Etwas zurückhalten (holding back somewhat), pianissimo. Hampson sings it almost as if waking up from a daydream; although it is notated mostly in steady quarter notes, he sings with a sense of spontaneity, even discovery, allowing those quarter notes whatever time is needed to make the point rather than sticking to precise rhythmic values.
Such an approach is characteristic of the entire performance; Hampson's is probably not a rendition for foul-crying, pencil-poking precisionists who come all unglued if rhythm isn't exact to the microsecond. But that would be the nitpickers' loss.
Although I've been focusing on Der Einsame im Herbst, and therefore behaving as though Thomas Hampson were the only vocalist on the recording, the lieder featuring tenor Stuart Skelton (Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde, Von der Jugend, and Der Trunkene im Frühling) are equally engaging.
Listeners may be unaware of the daunting opening of Das Trinkleid vom Jammer der Erde, as the tenor soloist is pitted against the massed forces of a Mahlerian orchestra playing at a solid forte. The soloist is therefore obliged to come charging out of the gate at full throttle, no warmup, high-ish in his range. It's quite an eat-or-be-eaten affair.
Keep in mind that this CD is taken from live performances, so don't expect studio tempering à la Wunderlich/Klemperer — big and authoritative, but every hair in place. That only works when the engineers position a microphone six inches from the tenor's epiglottis. You're hearing Skelton belt it to the balcony, remember, so fur definitely goes flying — as it damn well should.
Das Lied von der Erde can be acquired on CD from the following sources, among others:
In addition, the album can be downloaded from iTunes Music Store and Amazon (also among others).
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