Mahler: Symphony No. 2

Resistance was strong before I listened to a note of ‘Santtu’s Resurrection’. The new Philharmonia logo in the cover design is nasty and cheap; neither soloist is mentioned on back or front. The conductor’s track record so far has been variable, sometimes enigmatic, though the players love him and he draws a rich sound from them. And while I didn’t attend this live performance, I heard principal guest conductor Jakub Hrůša’s interpretation, which seemed to me as good as it gets. As it turns out, this is special indeed, and given such spectacular engineering (by Tom Stokes under producer Andrew Cornall), anyone wanting a Second in state-of-the-art sound should be happy with it. A lingering on the opening movement’s glimpse-of-heaven second theme made me fear for exaggeration, but that didn’t materialise; where slow, Rouvali draws exquisite colouring, and the quieter moments – the ghostly dying fall at the end of the movement, the minor-key contrast of the old-world minuet with its wraith-like flute stand out first among many – all have the right magic. The scherzo is supremely nimble and articulate; after the first big wave of catastrophe, supremely vivid, the soloists are all first rate, from judgment-day horn and trombone to world-class mezzo Jennifer Johnston and perfect lyric soprano Mari Eriksmoen. The Philharmonia Chorus sounds like it’s bolstered by professionals; soprano power in the great climax has never blazed better. It must have been something to be there in the Festival Hall; but this experience is still unmistakably that of a live performance. David Nice