Why do all Mahler recordings seem too bright?
Yes - I may be exaggerating but I haven’t yet found any recordings of his symphonies that properly balance the extra treble energy that are often part of the dynamic swings. Part of the problem may be that I’m not sure I yet actually “like” Mahler’s music though there are moments that are exquisite. But, I can’t get through a whole piece because the recordings hurt my ears.
As a side note - I have been on both sides of a microphone - having been a musician in the past and also having recorded/mixed a number of orchestral concerts at a performing arts center. Pre-pandemic I would go to orchestral concerts regularly. So - I do have at least some reference.
I have some recordings (they were given to me) that are positively unlistenable (a DG recording of his 5th may be singularly the worst recording I’ve heard).
I thought the hi res versions of San Francisco by MTT might be the ticket. While better, they still seem too bright and harsh to me.
Perhaps it’s my system that’s too bright, or perhaps something else is going on but I’ve plenty of other classical music that sounds better. We’ll recorded jazz and acoustic, too.
Of course I can find poor recordings in any genre, but I’d welcome recommendations from my fellow forumites of some Mahler recordings that I might try. I’d love to be able to listen to the closing moments of the 2nd at reasonable volume - without cringing.
Have you heard the Ivan Fischer/BFO Bruckner 7 on Channel Classics? |
No, but I've heard the outstanding sonics of his Maher cycle. Will check it out on Qobuz. The close and multi-micd Bruckner is not always what I consider bright, but the brass section can also be too forward in the mix. They're the loudest instruments and there's no need to emphasize them. |
Well, try the second movement to hear what I think of as a perfect balance in the horns in the multichannel version. (It's even better in a different, unreleased rendering that I have the privilege to possess!) |
@kr4 I wasn’t addressing brightness in the Ivan Fisher recordings, should have separated the two thoughts. My issue is with many modern day Bruckner digital recordings. There is emphasis on the brass (trumpets and trombones) due to over mic’ing or in the mix. The recordings are not balanced in a ff or fff passage. Adagios are usually well mixed. The reason I mention Bruckner is due to the large scale orchestra close in size to Mahler. I’ve seen quite a few Bruckner performances where 5 trumpets and 5 trombones are used. That's a lot of microphones being used for recordings.
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