Despite years of hearing live music, we both had Mahler firsts this month; for me, the Eighth Symphony and for you the Third. Maybe it says something, that a composer so often performed still has his rarities.
I saw the Eighth at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and it was mind-boggling to witness how much money it must have cost. This piece calls for eight vocal soloists, all of which were luxuriously (though imperfectly) cast, two standard choirs and a children's choir.
Mahler described it as having a Barnum & Bailey quality, which I don't see as an advantage. At Symphony Hall, the opening felt as though it couldn't have been anything other than an impenetrable wall of sound.
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