Leonard Bernstein - Mahler: Symphony No. 1 in D Major

180-gram vinyl

"Leonard Bernstein had a reputation for getting slower, heavier, and more portentous as his interpretations matured. Well, here's the disc that gives the lie to the myth. This sunny, superbly played, magnificently recorded performance captures Bernstein at his uninhibited best. Where his first recording seemed at times contrived and lacking in flow, this version has all of the naturalness, charm, and grace of a spring morning.

The third-movement funeral march, here taken at a very fast tempo, has exactly the character of cartoon music that Mahler intended — this performance has its tongue firmly in its cheek. Given the fact that the Concertgebouw is one of the world's great Mahler orchestras, the result is without question the finest modern version of the symphony — period." — Amazon.com