10 best Mahler singers (and some of the worst)
mainThere was a time when it was possible to speak of a singers as ‘Mahlerian’, meaning that he or she had been trained by someone steeped in the Mahler tradition. That’s no longer the case. Singers are generalists nowadays and Mahler is just another composer on the schedule.
So I thought it might be useful to put together a set of outstanding singers who knew Mahler in their bones and left a lasting record of their interpretations, each with their mentor in parentheses.
Christa Ludwig (Klemperer)
Jo Vincent (Mengelberg)
Richard Lewis (Berthold Goldschmidt)
Kathleen Ferrier (Walter)
Janet Baker (Klemperer)
Maureen Forrester (Walter)
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Horenstein)
Kerstin Thorborg (Walter)
Brigitte Fassbaender (Kubelik)
Lisa della Casa
Stokowski with Mahler 8 soloists, March 1916
And the worst?
Eiko Kitazawa utterly derails the 1930 first recording of Mahler 4, conducted by Hidemaro Konoye.
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was cast on recordings by her husband Walter Legge despite lacking any positive feeling for the composer. Her singing is glassy at best.
Placido Domingo attempted Das Lied von der Erde in studio several times. So far as I’m aware only one of these hopeless efforts was released, with Esa-Pekka Salonen.
Other tenors who self-destruct in Das Lied include Jon Vickers, Siegfried Jerusalem and, latterly, Jonas Kaufmann. Klaus König, who recorded with Tennstedt, is nowhere near adequate. Desi Halban, who recorded Mahler 4 and some songs with Bruno Walter, is an avowed amateur – worth hearing as the daughter of Mahler’s cast-member Selma Kurz but not in the league of real performers.
Interesting that the Szell version of Wunderhorn with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and D F-D is considered a classic. Having it on my shelves I concur with that. Also although Konig is certainly not among the best tenors to record Das Lied he is certainly at least adequate, if not quite good. And the fact that you omit the magnificent Wunderlich from your list does make your judgment highly suspect.
Wunderlich recorded Das Lied with Klemperer, then died. I’m not even sure he ever performed it in concert. Certainly, he never met Christa Ludwig at the recording. They were taped months apart.
He did. With Fi-Di, Keilberth conducting, Bamberg 1964. There is a Myto release and some other bootlegs.
What about this live performance at the Vienna Festival?
http://www.operatoday.com/content/2012/02/gustav_mahler_d.php
Besides the studio-recording there are three live-recordings of Wunderlich in ‘Das Lied von der Erde’ (Krips, Keilberth, Schmidt-Isserstedt). Wunderlich also sang Doctor Marianus in Symph VIII.
There is a live recording available from DG…Wunderlich & Fischer-Dieskau, conducted by Josef Krips!
I heard Fritz Wunderlich singing Lied von der Erde in concert in Hamburg (1965?). Nan Merriman was the mezzo soprano, Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt conducted the NDR Symphony Orchestra-
http://www.andreas-praefcke.de/wunderlich/discography/discogr.htm lists three live Das Lied by Wunderlich.
There is a live recording (DG) conducted by Krips, with Wunderlich and Dieskau singing (and what a pair!). The orchestra’s performance is not flawless, but the singing is unbelievable!
I heard Wunderlich sing „Lied von der Erde“ in Vienna with Fischer-Dieskau, Josef Krips conducted the Wiener Symphoniker.
Wunderlich?!
You forgot to rate Kiri Te Kanawa’s Mahler.
Meh.
Domingo showed how vain he is by saying in interview that he wouldn’t like to do dLvdE in concert because he has to do nothing for that last 30 mins ! That of course was in the days he was still a tenor. Anybody know if he tried the movements 2+4+6 as a baritone ?
Fischer with Horenstein ?
Not even a mention for Fritz Wunderlich???? Extraordinary!
In agreement. Here are a couple of samples of what used to be
Irmgard Seefried in the closing movement of the 4th symphony, with Walter
https://youtu.be/nxhWvYHWr5U
Rosette Anday in the “Urlicht” from the 2nd symphony, also with Walter
https://youtu.be/NwvOV268mhk
In agreement ? how so without a mention of a
certain Ewa Podles who could give most mentioned here a lesson or two on the art form ..
I saw Podles sing in a performance of Mahler 3 in Seattle (G. Schwarz). As far as I’m concerned, she stole the entire show! Fabulous
You mention Ferrier and Walter but not Patzak?
I was about to mention Patzak — that fantastic recording of _Das Lied…_ with Bruno Walter.
When reading “Mahler singers”, I was thinking of Gustav Mahler’s glorious ensemble at the Vienna Court Opera from the period of his tenure (1897-1907), such as Erik Schmedes, Franz Naval, Leo Slezak, Marie Gutheil-Schroeder, Anna von Mildenburg, Selma Kurz, Richard Mayr, Ottilie Metzger-Lattermann and a long etc.
Most of them can be found on record, although they might for logic reasons be past their vocal prime.
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=92881
Some of them had trained future singers, such as Anna von Mildenburg, who’s most famous student was Lauritz Melchior (a singer not exactly related to Mahler’s music)
Thomas Hampson recorded Mahler with Leonard Bernstein and was asked to sing all the Mahler songs in the last great Amsterdam Mahler Festival. He is claimed all over the world a a great Mahler interpreter and should be included in the ‘best’ list.
who should he replace among the 10?
I fear that many of us thought suggesting others would be welcome. You might have said that your 10 were irreplacable.
(a) Do there have to be only 10? I know the name of the post is “10 Best Mahler Singers,” but.
(b) If someone must be removed, then… I was never much moved by Fassbaender. (Although I’m only familiar with her later recording with Giulini)
Fassbaenda made two recordings with Giulini of “Das Lied”, one live in Vienna, one a studio recording in Berlin. I much prefer the former (no longer available of course) from every point of view.
A bit off the beaten path, but I love this recording of Jose van Dam doing Wunderhorn, Ruckert and Kindertotenlieder: https://www.discogs.com/Mahler-Jos%C3%A9-Van-Dam-Orchestre-National-de-Lille-Jean-Claude-Casadesus-Kindertotenlieder-R%C3%BCckert-Li/release/2149452
He has exactly the right gravitas for singing Mahler.
That recording he made of “Ich bin der Welt…” for _Le maître de musique_ is supernally beautiful. I don’t care if his German diction isn’t perfect.
A beautiful, beautiful recording. I count it as one of my 3 or 4 favorite vocal recordings, and I’m not even especially a fan of Mahler.
Thomas Allen? I’ve gotten the “Wunderhorn” with Mackerras, Allen and Ann Murray and I love it. I definitely prefer it to FiDis “Wunderhorn” which I once heard live (shows what an old cow I’ve become) and which was – for being honest – rather “dry”.
“Singers are generalists nowadays and Mahler is just another composer on the schedule.”
Couldn’t that also be said about Christa Ludwig and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau? Except that they had few equals and no superiors in most of their repertoire, and still do.
Absolutely no wonder that Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was “lacking any positive feeling for the composer”. She joined the German Nazi Party (NSDAP) in 1941, Schwarzkopf did: https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/schatten-der-vergangenheit.691.de.html?dram:article_id=55924
She also married someone said to be Jewish!
Irrelevant and completely untrue. Legge’s genealogy shows no Jewish traces.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2006/aug/24/classicalmusicandopera.secondworldwar
‘Legge was a Jew3’
Simply untrue. The late Alan Jefferson and I researched it to exhaustion. But believe what you like.
I though if it was printed in the Guardian it must be true! lol!
What was commonly believed around the time they were married? (I know, slightly different question).
Maybe just a question of sensibility from Mrs Legge’s part. In a sense I understand why some singers do not want to sing Mahler’s work, and why some conductors avoid his music. Note that even Bruno Walter refused to conduct Mahler 6, since he felt it was too sick.
Maybe the question of what I call sensibility can be illustrated by describing “my” Mahler: Mahler 5, 7 and 9 are wonderful music, as well as Das Lied von der Erde. Mahler 1 is big fun but it belongs to the entertainment business. Now-a-days I avoid the rest of the vocal works. I could never bear Das irdische Leben (from Des Knaben Wunderhorn), I cannot stand the Kindertotenlieder and most of the Rückert-Lieder, and Mahler 4 is a very sad story.
Lucia Popp/Klaus Tennstedt !
am intrigued by the fischer-dieskau/horenstein and fassbaender couplings. Have a very extensive Mahler collection and must never have seen the coupling on any list . Can Mr. Lebrecht enlighten me as to where performances with such singers and conductors occurred.
There is a wonderful Ruckert lieder with Irmgard Seefried and Manuel Rosenthal.
You mention Maureen Forester with Walter but what of her and Richard Lewis with Fritz Reiner and the CSO in Das Lied? I think that is her top Mahler recording. You list Lisa della Casa with no conductor – does that refer to her Mahler 4th with Reiner ? Not sure I would concur.
Since I have mentioned Reiner, personally I have always enjoyed his 78s with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Carol Brice in the Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen. Perhaps not the best but Brice made too few commercial recordings for top labels.
Have listen to Alfred Hodgson in Das Lied von der Erde, conducted by Horenstein. She was exception in everything she sang, but the color of her voice and gorgeous use of language are nearly unparalleled in the Mahler.
We lost Alfreda much too soon. I heard her sing a gorgeously moving Kindertotenlieder in the concert hall of the RNCM. You are right she was a true servant of music and Mahler’s music particularly.
I think you meant Alfreda?
I am not sure about the “Top 10” list. But Edith Mathis should be mentioned somewhere. I am very fond of her voice on Bernstein video of #4.
And in Karajan’s Mahler 4!
Unfortunately, Vickers recorded “Das Lied” quite late in his career. Just an opinion, but I think Jessye Norman is incredible in that recording. I saw her do “DLvdE” in San Jose, of all places. Her recording of the “Kindertotenlieder” with Ozawa/BSO is pretty darn good too. Don’t forget her contribution to both the Abbado/VPO and Ozawa/BSO recordings of Mahler 3.
Where is Hampson? One of the very best Mahler singers at all!
Surely Norma Procter deserves a mention- her symphony number 2 with Kubelik ( staggeringly beautiful Urlicht stands along side the best) number 3 with Horenstein , Das Klagende Lied etc.
I haven’t found a recording of Kindertotenlieder with her yet or Das Lied Von Der Erde although very likely that she sang both I should think.
Judith Raskin for her Mahler 4th with Szell/CO in 1964. Supposedly after she finished GS put down his baton and walked off the podium. Everyone remained in the hall assuming he went to the control room to listen to the playback. Eventually he was located at home having lunch. When informed of the situation he was reported to have said something to the effect that if people don’t know perfection when they hear it ….
…and let us not forget Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
I’d put Gerhaher and Quasthoff on a list of “Singers Who Are Wonderful At Mahler,” but trying to make a list of the “Ten Best” is like trying to limit wonderful Mozart (or Strauss) singers to a “10 best.”
Have you forgotten Heinrich Rehkemper or Alfred Poell who were very fine singers.
Barbara Bonney?
A best the exercise is meaningless ,it is only one
individuals taste.
Thomas Hampson…Jessye Norman…??
Regarding Vickers, I suggest listening to this live recording from 1970 with Maureen Forrester and the BSO conducted by William Steinberg. The sound is not the best, but Vickers clearly had the chops for the demands of ‘Das Trinklied.’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9YbP3KugsU.
Mitchell’s exhaustive study of Das Lied etc shows that the Kindertotenlieder were created by a male singer in 1905, and 4 of the 5 Rueckert Songs were sung there too. So why did male singers generally give them up to women, and did Mahler have a preference either way?