Symphony 2 [Blu-ray]

Rising to the Level of the Indispensable
All of a sudden, in this centennial year of the death of Mahler, there are now four Mahler Seconds on Blu-Ray.
ABBADO's Lucerne performance of 19/20 August 2003 was the first to appear on Blu-Ray. There was a sound problem with the initial release, but it has been fixed. My copy forms part of the boxed set of the first seven symphonies, where the First and the Second are combined onto one disc, the Third and Fourth on another, the Fifth and Sixth on another, while the Seventh is sole occupant of another disc. It is wonderful to have all the Mahler symphonies out on Blu-ray already so early in the life of the format, and the bulk of them presented by Abbado's handpicked Lucerne players. The contributions of Berlin veterans like clarinettist Sabine Meyer and flautist Emmanuel Pahud are highlighted in the Second, and their presence is missed in the First, which was recorded later. The blu-ray sound of the Second is astonishingly better than on the prior DVD release, and reveals...

Huge improvement over dvd release
This performance by Boulez has always been a yardstick against which other versions are measured. I will not try and repeat the essence of the several excellent reviews of the original dvd. I will point out some important differences between this and the competition by Chailly, Abbado and Gilbert now that we're on a level Bluray playing field.

Firstly, the improvement in both sound and video in this bluray over the dvd is mind boggling. Even though this recording is now over six years old, the picture quality is impeccable, every little detail visible. The sound is downright scary in its power (I used DTS MASTER audio). One of the biggest differences is the cellos and basses, particularly in the opening bars. The close miking here gives exactly the impact you want in this entry. Likewise, throughout the piece, because of Boulez's regard for lines and counterpoint, everything is heard in all its glorious detail. By contrast, Chailly does not bring the basses properly to the...



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