Totenfeier

"For the dedicated Mahlerian, this disc is, in most respects, the answer to a prayer. For the serious music lover also, it is one that reveals fresh insights into the composer's crativity. It therefore is a valuable disc, which coincidentally renges over Mahler's evolving process during 25 years ... The performance is, in the main, a notably fine".

"Ideen er god. Paavo Järvi og Frankfurts Radiosymfoniorkester har samlet fire satser af Mahler, som alle har haft en egen lidt mærkelig skæbne ... Brittens spændende arrangement af andensatsen, "Hvad de vilde blomster fortalte mig", fra Mahlers tredje symfoni er her finalen i den "ny" symfoni sammensat af fire uafhængige satser. Virkningen er overaskende positiv".

"To hear Mahler on this recording played by period instruments is an engrossing experience ... The sound of even so vast an array of period instruments in full cry is slimmer than a modern orchestra but it has a clarity and visceral impact in this live recording that is startlingly effective ... [Connolly] is very fine indeed, sailing effortlessly into her upper register but always with a rich and creamy sound".

"While Connolly's dark vocal hues fully convey Mahler's melancholy, her singing offers few of the glimpses of joy that ultimately makes the music far more tragic. Beyond that, however, the OAE provide soemthing all too rare in the Mahler catalogue ... This is a recognisable portrait of Mahler as a young man, rather than an elder composer of 10 symphonies looking backwards. And for that reason alone, it deserves a place on the shelf".