Mahler: Symphony No. 6 – LSO, Gergiev
The eagerly anticipated debut recording by Valery Gergiev for LSO Live is also his first recording of music by Mahler and the first in a complete cycle of the composer’s symphonies. Gergiev recorded the Sixth Symphony in November 2007 as part of his sensational concert series of the symphonies, and delivers an intensely emotional account of this pivotal work.
Does the Symphony foretell the tragedy of Mahler’s later life, or does it have a more cerebral purpose? Whatever the composer’s motives for writing it, tragic it certainly is: driven, bitter and sweet by turns, and ending in devastation – utterly compelling.
‘This is a reading of great intensity, creating a most powerful impact… a stunning performance of considerable musical belief in the demonstrable fact that Mahler’s Sixth is a great and original masterpiece.’
International Record Review