Riccardo Chailly continues his well received Mahler cycle with a sterling performance of the early song cycle, 'Des Knaben Wunderhorn'.
Chailly has a trump card with the ethereal voice of Barbara Bonney dominating proceedings and the other soloists are also pretty strong, coping with subtle inflexions and nuances of this wonderful music with comparative ease.
Fulgoni's 'Urlicht' is ravishingly beautiful and here, I am reminded of the great past legends in this piece such as Kathleen Ferrier, this is one of the more memorable parts of the cycle.
Throughout the work we have the magnificent Concertgebouw Orchestra playing with their usual aplomb in the chamber music pieces that are so essentially Mahlerian.
With Donald Mitchell's authoritative notes and Decca's marvellous recording, this issue is another essential piece in the Chailly/Mahler jigsaw.
Copyright © 2003, Gerald Fenech