In the nineteenth century,
many composers – including Mahler -
transcribed their own and other people’s
work. In an age before recordings, this
meant more people could get hold of
a playable version of a large piece
of music. The Society for Musical Performances,
however, existed primarily for composers
wanting to study "how" compositions
evolved by reducing them to the sparest
skeletons. Their transcriptions were
not for entertainment or casual listening.
Any evaluation of Erwin Stein’s transcription
for the Society of Mahler’s Fourth Symphony
must be made bearing this in mind, because
it’s not meant to sound like Mahler
‘lite’, nor is it meant to be "beautiful"
for its own sake. Nonetheless, a good
performance can make all the difference.
Of the four recordings of Stein’s transcription,
this new version, by the Thomas Christian
Ensemble, is far and away the best,
so much so, that it is a fulfilling
musical experience in its own right.
From the very first
bars, the Ensemble’s commitment to the
piece shines through. The simplicity
of the orchestration makes each group
of sounds distinct: winds setting out
a theme, while the strings curve seductively
around them. The Schnellkappe is
particularly attractive, the bells not
too dominant – "their time will
come" - and the overall effect
is of a delicately paced dance. This
is no clumsy Ländler, but more
like a minuet danced by putti, a reference
to the vision of Heaven to come. Overall,
the transcription brings out the airy,
dance-like character of the symphony,
and this performance, more than any
of the others, emphasizes its almost
baroque quality. Tiny details become
clear in close-up: the flattened toot
toot of the harmonium introduces humour
with the sparest of notes, the solo
flute dances around the piano part,
imitating its steady tread. In the second
movement, a solo violin represents Freund
Hein, the fiddler who leads the
dance of death. The pianos play an essential
part in the transcription for they hold
together the whole structure of the
piece. They don’t have a "part",
but come in at intervals when depth
is needed. Here they are performed with
real warmth of tone, firm enough to
keep the piece on course, yet sensitive
to the other parts. It is especially
effective in the Ruhevoll, which
Mahler himself told Bruno Walter reminded
him of the statues of medieval saints,
their hands solemnly folded across their
chests, but whose calm faith in a better
afterlife lights their faces with gentle
smiles. The piano part adds resonant
gravitas, which, together with the solo
violin creates a lovely sense of ebb
and flow. Its contemplative tone makes
the dramatic "sunrise" coda
all the more glorious and uplifting.
In the last movement
the piece reaches its apotheosis. It
was the first part to be written, all
else leads up to it, and any performance
stands or falls on it. This is the only
recording of the transcription that
uses a really top notch soloist, and
it makes all the difference, particularly
as the singer has to adjust to the reduced
orchestral forces. Oelze is blessed
with unusual purity of tone, so the
bell-like clarity of her voice matches
the piece perfectly in purely aesthetic
terms. Moreover, she is far more experienced
than the other soloists: for her, emotional
warmth and sensitivity flow naturally.
She seems to sing with the smile of
the saints, beatified: Elftausend
Jungfrauen zu tanzen sich trauen
is so beautifully phrased it sent goose-bumps
up my spine, and I’ve heard a few good
versions in my time. Although I personally
have a weakness for singers with fragile
voices, a voice as genuinely lovely
as this is much more in keeping with
Mahler’s intention, that that divine
bliss conquers all earthly sorrow. It
was a powerful message for him, and
should be sung with convincing Seligkeit
(heavenly bliss). Oelze’s background
in early music and the baroque adds
to her appreciation of Mahler’s imagery:
Keine Musik ist ja nicht auf Erden,
die unsrer verglichen kann warden
(no music on earth can be compared to
ours).
What makes a performance
work may have a lot to do with the vision
the performers have of it. In this case,
the Thomas Christian Ensemble have clearly
thought through the transcription and
the original symphony. As Stein tried
to encapsulate the structural logic,
they have tried to express the emotional
significance. Contrary to the usual
clichés, Mahler was not obsessed
by death per se, but in the overcoming
of it, through nature, transcendence,
resurrection. He loved life too much
to make light of its loss. The Fourth
Symphony is the apotheosis of the first
part of his career: after this he would
leave the world of Wunderhorn for new
pastures. Hence the powerful emotional
release of Das himmlische Leben,
a vision of life beyond death and worldly
pain. Even the massacred 11,000 virgins
sing. There is another life, greater
than that we know on earth. He called
it a humoresque, after all. The Thomas
Christian Ensemble play with almost
tactile joyfulness, that it’s almost
infectious. The music dances along,
negotiating Stein’s spare outlines with
aplomb. In the final movement, everything
comes together in an explosion of genuinely
felt awe and wonder. The version by
the Linos Ensemble comes close but doesn’t
quite have this extra panache. Kenneth
Slowik’s version, with the Smithsonian
Chamber Players, has quite a different
emphasis, as he focused on the transparency
of instrumentation, using period instruments.
Much as I respect Avie Record’s policies,
their recent recording, alas, has little
going for it musically. This version
therefore has it all: vivacity of playing,
warmth and humour and a clear, focused
vision of where the music is going.
Moreover, it has an exceptionally good,
experienced soloist in Christiane Oelze.
It is the one version that comes closest
to capturing both the logic of the transcription
and the gloriousness of the original
symphony. It’s simply in a league of
its own.
Dabringhaus and Grimm
(MDG) are an audiophile company who
make great efforts at warm, resonant
sound reproduction. This version was
recorded at the music room at the Schloß
Esterhazy, which adds to the ambience.
Anne Ozorio
Christiane Oelze (soprano) 
