Symphony No. 8 in E flat major ("Symphony of a Thousand")
Mahler's Symphony No. 8 in E flat major, dubbed the "Symphony of a Thousand" by a promoter, was his big hit, the one that finally brought him public admiration when it was premiered a year before his death. It does not really feature a thousand performers, but the massed choirs and instrumentalists assembled by Vladimir Jurowski in this 2017 live performance number about 400, which is larger than usual. Jurowski gets remarkable clarity from the London Philharmonic Orchestra in the instrumental strands of the work's quieter ...
Read More
Mahler's Symphony No. 8 in E flat major, dubbed the "Symphony of a Thousand" by a promoter, was his big hit, the one that finally brought him public admiration when it was premiered a year before his death. It does not really feature a thousand performers, but the massed choirs and instrumentalists assembled by Vladimir Jurowski in this 2017 live performance number about 400, which is larger than usual. Jurowski gets remarkable clarity from the London Philharmonic Orchestra in the instrumental strands of the work's quieter passages, the ones where Mahler said he wanted the orchestra to sound like a giant guitar. He effectively manages the soloists, who have to be balanced with the brass, and Judith Howarth warms to her task in her punishing soprano part. Most compelling of all, Jurowski shapes the work into its proper (or perhaps improper) extremes, and the result is tremendous momentum in the first half and mystical transcendence in the second, both greeted with audience cheers that are fabulously...
Read Less