Mahler:
Symphony No. 6 in A minor (1903-05, rev. 1906): New York Philharmonic, Lorin Maazel, conductor, Avery Fisher Hall, New York City,
June 22 and 25, 2005 (BH)
Just last month I heard a bracing and powerful Mahler
Sixth by Markus Stenz with the Minnesota Orchestra, and
now this one – a gleaming, highly polished finale to the New
York Philharmonic’s season.
On paper, the Sixth might be tailor-made for Lorin
Maazel’s strengths, although I confess I am not familiar with
his Mahler recordings with the Vienna Philharmonic, completed
in the 1980s and 1990s. But
this was a Sixth with elegance and relative high spirits.
Perhaps in the way of Boulez with this piece, Maazel
chose brilliant illumination over rough-hewn edginess, with
less chiaroscuro than most interpreters find, but it worked.
As has been reported earlier
and by others, the New York Philharmonic is sounding quite impressive
these days, and here seemed entirely comfortable, yet energized,
in one of the most difficult challenges in the repertoire.
The mercurial Sixth has anxiety, pain, sadness,
ebullience, winsomeness, and shock – all shoving each other
aside in a ninety-minute fight for dominance that ultimately
implodes, promising nothing more to listeners except grim emptiness. The irony is that in creating his stark vision,
Mahler produced a hugely entertaining ride, often as seductive
as a Hollywood film score, albeit riddled with surprises.
The Philharmonic’s brass section,
in particular, was seemingly invulnerable.
Phil Myers, principal horn, is marking his twenty-fifth
year with the group, and how better to celebrate than with a
golden-hued performance like this, supremely affirmative in
its artistry, without a weak-kneed moment anywhere. Principal tuba Alan Baer produced marvelously
characterized growls of forlorn defeat in the final measures
of the evening. And
the barrage of trumpets and trombones were no less precise.
If as a group they could still play even softer now and
then (I’m picky) I’ll gladly accept the tradeoff in precision
and sheer musical enthusiasm.
Maazel adopted the Andante-Scherzo
order for the middle movements.
The utterly haunting Andante was flowing, piercing
and unwavering in its questioning and sorrow.
The orchestra’s strings, especially the violins, outdid
themselves in Mahler’s long lines. The savage Scherzo erupted in all its
ominous splendor, its occasional shrieking outbursts immaculately
timed, with the bassoon getting a satisfying last growl before
the final movement’s descent into madness.
For the famous hammer blows
(two here, rather than three), the Philharmonic used a brand-new
“Mahler box,” designed by noted acousticians and making its
debut at these concerts. Percussionist Dan Druckman, already seen sneaking
backstage several times to do the offstage cowbells, was charged
with its debut, and with Maazel’s body language cueing him,
the two thuds had maximum effect, unleashing more torrents as
the orchestra raced to the finish line.
Quite chillingly, the very last
“plunk” that closes the piece wasn’t the pianissimo that
I’ve heard most often. Rather, it had a nasty sting, as if in some
1950s film noir, with the protagonist frantically hanging by
fingertips from a rooftop ledge thirty stories above the street
– and then having those fingers stepped on.
The friend with me had never heard a drop of Mahler before
and had no idea what she was getting into, and loved it.
Bruce
Hodges
Lorin Maazel’s performance of Mahler’s Sixth with
the New York Philharmonic can be heard on the New York Phil’s
website until 13 July.
http://newyorkphilharmonic.org/home.cfm
