Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Coming Soon to a Record Store Near You: Bernstein's Mahler 2

I've marked March 31 on my calendar, because that's the date Leonard Bernstein's recording of Mahler's 2nd Symphony ("Resurrection") with the New York Philharmonic will be reissued on vinyl. This is my favorite performance of one of my favorite works of art. I have the CD, but missed out on the vinyl when it was originally released in 1990. The original vinyl pressing reportedly sounds better than the CD pressing, which doesn't make much sense since it is a digital recording. I would love to have found out, but original pressings sell for hundreds of dollars. Now my curiosity will be satisfied for a lot less with this vinyl reissue.

The reissue, according to one source, is being produced by a Korean company. Multiple sources confirm it will be cut at Emil Berliner Studio, which was the in-house mastering facility of Deutsche Grammophon, the label that issued the original recording of the performance. The reissue will be pressed at Pallas in Germany, one of the world's best record pressing plants. Needless to say I have high hopes. This is the most exciting reissue in years for me.

Bernstein, the over-the-top conductor, was the perfect match for Mahler, the over-the-top composer. Here he is conducting the finale of the 2nd with the London Philharmonic in crappy YouTube fidelity:

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