Mahler's 8th Symphony
requires such
massive forces that it's attracted the nickname 'The Symphony of a
Thousand': As a result it's very rarely played, so I was very pleased
to have the chance to hear it live at the Royal Albert Hall yesterday
evening. I would guess that there weren't actually a thousand
performers, but very likely over 800: a huge orchestra, two extra brass
sections in the gallery (you can see one of them in the top right-hand
corner), organ, two large choirs (scored separately), a children's
choir, and eight soloists. (In the photo there are as many adult choir
members out of shot as there are in it... a little bit of camera-shake I'm afraid: handheld in relatively low light).
The Royal
Albert Hall
is the ideal venue for it: most studio recordings sound constricted
because even the largest studios are too small. Here the sound could
breathe, and though inevitably the acoustic tends to smear detail the
climaxes sounded magnificent.
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