April 24, 2009

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/apr/24/mahler-symphony-review

Mahler: Symphony No 6: Zürich Tonhalle Orch/Zinman

By: Andrew Clements

1. Mahler
2. Symphony No 6
3. Zürich Tonhalle Orch/Zinman
4. RCA

In its thoroughly unflashy way, David Zinman's Mahler cycle, which is appearing
chronologically, continues to achieve a remarkably high standard. His view of the Sixth
never wears its heart on its sleeve; in what is the only one of Mahler's symphonies whose
ending is unambiguously tragic, Zinman is at pains to avoid revealing the full horror of
that tragedy prematurely. His treatment of the first movement is a model of restraint, and
by placing the slow movement before the scherzo (the order Mahler chose for the
premiere, reversing that in the first edition of the printed score), he dilutes its baleful
intensity even more. Yet that choice allows him to build the tension steadily through the
scherzo into the vast finale, which is laid out with remarkable formal clarity, if not the
sense of catastrophic power that some conductors bring to its hammer-blow climaxes.
The relatively lean sound of the Tonhalle orchestra helps in making those points, too; this
isn't a performance that will sweep you away with its power, but it is one that makes you
think constantly about the way in which Mahler translated his personal despair into such
a cogent musical argument.