Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde; Three Rückert Lieder in Bloomington, MN

This 1952
Mahler
recording showed up some years ago on the BBC's list of the 50 greatest classical recordings of all time. This was despite any number of issues. Contralto
Kathleen Ferrier
was under treatment for the cancer that would kill her a few years later, and she weakens a bit over the course of
Das Lied von der Erde
. Her German pronunciation has some eccentricities. The mismatch between
Ferrier
's voice and that of tenor
Julius Patzak
is deep, and the 1952 sound isn't great, although this early 2000s reissue by
Naxos
cleans up a lot of surface noise and is probably the top choice (the recording has bounced around for some years in various reissues). The thing is, absolutely none of this matters. To hear
's voice rising out of its preternatural depths in the opening
Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen
, one of the three
Rückert-Lieder
included, is absolutely miraculous. The pop culture-literate will recognize this reference: if director
Tim Burton
had included this instead of
Slim Whitman
as the planetary defense in
Mars Attacks!
, the film would have been even better. The final "Der Abschied" from
is just about as powerful, especially inasmuch as one gets the feeling it was
's own farewell (although she kept singing for another year). For all the sheer monumental beauty of
's voice, there is another strength here without which it would not quite have been able to work its magic. Conductor
Bruno Walter
, leading the
Vienna Philharmonic
, knew
personally, gave the premieres of several of his works, and provides a unique kind of free rhythmic framework that allows
to do her stuff. Those who have never heard this recording are missing out on one of classical music's peak experiences. ~ James Manheim