This is the Best Mahler 8 Ever

I have tried to get into this symphony for the longest time but it never seem to hang together and I was beginning to think that the composer was missing something ... but having heard Michael Tilson Thomas version I now know that Mahler was a Genius that was completely inspired and brought a slice of heaven down here for us to enjoy. This Mahler 8 is beautiful, subtle and heavenly....The best And the recording is superb in capturing all the details with big forces and small forces all come out so beautifully... 5.5 stars *****+

Another Mahler 8 bites the dust

gglks

The sad part about MTT's Mahler cycle is that it so Un Mahlerian.Time and again he lets the music relax when it should surge forward..this is supposed to be joyous not grandiose and most of the singers seem over stretched and just not good enough.You need flawless singing and charismatic conducting in this work and you don't get it here.

Excellent Recording

demazurek

Never have I heard the textures of this Symphony with such clarity. Relative to other performances of the Mahler 8, this one seems almost "chamber-esque". An excellent cap to Mr Thomas' Mahler cycle.

Exceptionally dynamic performance and recording

xoconostle

I was fortunate enough to attend one of the performances from which this recording is derived, and am stunned at how well the engineers captured and convey the intense dynamic range of the sonorities of the concert. Tilson Thomas is the greatest living Mahlerian conductor and this recording is the gem in the crown of his now-complete Mahler cycle.