CDs: MAHLER SYMPHONIES BY INBAL, TENNSTEDT

The first four symphonies of Gustav Mahler, as has often been observed, inhabit a self-enclosed world. They do not so much comprise the composer’s farewell to the folk-song-oriented “Wunderhorn” years of his youth as much as they represent the period during which he, for the last time, allowed this material to dominate his symphonic tapestry, or at least to co-exist with the darker concerns that would soon occupy his work.

The direct appeal, comparative economy and sonic possibilities of those earlier symphonies has not been lost on conductors and record companies who are quickly crowding the compact-disc catalogue with recordings, even at this relatively early date in the era of laser reproduction.

Now, from the Japanese firm Denon, comes the first cycle of Mahler symphonies made expressly for the CD format (there are no LP or cassette versions). The project derives, surprisingly, not from a city like Berlin or Vienna, steeped in celebrated Mahler traditions, but from Frankfurt, as a co-production with Hessian Radio.

All the recordings feature Israeli conductor Eliahu Inbal and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony. Four installments, issued separately, have already appeared. Joining Inbal and orchestra are the Chorus of Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Hamburg, and the Dale Warland Singers in the Symphony No. 2, and both the Limburger Domsingknaben and the Women’s Chorus of Frankfurter Kantorei in No. 3. Mezzo-soprano Doris Soffel and soprano Helen Donath are the featured soloists throughout.

Inbal proves an assured, resourceful and caring Mahlerian, probing these works for moments of easy charm and evocative atmosphere, rather than resolving all the overriding questions of structure. He judges each symphony in the context of its time, rather than assuming the ultra-sophisticated posture of the conductor who, armed with knowledge of Mahler’s subsequent career, sees turbulent storm clouds lurking behind the sunniest gesture.

The First Symphony (Denon 33C37-7537) basks in the overt pantheism of the hopeful, 28-year-old composer. Inbal misses nothing of the vernal freshness of the opening movement, delights in the dancing innocence of the second and relishes the grotesquerie of the “Frere Jacques” scherzo. There’s less to commend in the perfunctory finale, where Inbal’s tempos refuse to cohere.

The Symphony No. 2 (“Resurrection”) (Denon 60C37-7603/4--two compact discs) presents more formidable problems of structure and more violent contrasts of moods, and it emerges the least winning performance of the lot. Inbal rarely musters the sheer sonic weight for the relentless tread of the opening Allegro, bogging down in unorthodox tempo relationships. Quiet affirmation seems more congenial to the conductor, who lends a gentle piquancy to the nostalgia of the second movement and bites gleefully into the sarcasm of the “St. Anthony” scherzo.

Soffel lends only fitful lyricism to her “Urlicht” solo, while, in the Klopstock ode, which inspires the affirmative exultation of the finale, the distant recording minimizes the effect of both the choral work and Donath’s entry. Where one wants a sonic and emotional juggernaut, Inbal offers a manicured response.

The Third Symphony (Denon 60C37-7828/9--two compact discs) starts with a remarkably characterful first movement, with Inbal rarely losing control during the 33-minute duration of this Dionysiac march of summer. Yet the Frankfurt Orchestra rarely sounds like a world-class ensemble. Imprecise string entries and brass without security in quieter passages dog the performance consistently, bringing it down in the rapturous final Adagio. Soffel misses the contralto solidity for her “Zarathustra” night song.

Inbal is at his best in the Fourth Symphony (Denon 33C37-7952), where he walks a sage middle ground between boisterousness and sentimentality. One hears the ingenuous ebullience of the first movement, and the conductor’s heeding Mahler’s admonishment “not to hurry.” The mistuned violin in the scherzo dispenses its share of grotesquerie, and Inbal re-creates the sense of wonder in the extended third movement. Donath intones the “heavenly pleasures” finale with both sweetness and textual understanding.

Recorded in Frankfurt’s Alte Oper, Denon’s CDs offer unexceptionable sound, but the company deserves commendation for frequent indexing within movements.

For a traditional Mahler experience, there’s always Klaus Tennstedt’s still uncompleted cycle for Angel, which has started to appear in the CD format.

The Third Symphony (CDCB-47404--two compact discs) finds the German maestro in a monumental, unsmiling vein, evoking a plush response from the London Philharmonic. Ortrun Wenkel provides luxuriant sounds for the contralto solo, with the women of the London Philharmonic Choir and the Southend Boys Choir contributing noble support. The CDs bring an added glow to the 1980 sonics.

There’s little glow to Giuseppe Sinopoli’s traversal of the “Resurrection” (Deutsche Grammophon 415 959-2--two compact discs). The Italian conductor bestows a fearsome intellectual weight and technical rigor on his forces, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus.

With the sound engineers’ complicity, he arranges balances so expertly that traditionally submerged details surface with unaccustomed brilliance. He stresses clean articulation and razor-sharp attacks so meticulously as to set a standard. He knits tempos so ingeniously that Mahler’s re-creation of the Day of Judgment acquires palpable distinction.

But, despite some wonderfully blended choral work, Sinopoli’s performance ultimately misses those requisite qualities of radiance and ecstasy. The culprits include mezzo Brigitte Fassbaender, who both here and in the appended reading of “Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen” contributes soulless vocalism, and soprano Rosalind Plowright, whose tortured veristic approach to the Klopstock ode provides an unattractive stylistic jolt.

Still, everyone should hear Sinopoli’s Mahler, if only to understand the limits of intelligence in music that cries out for heart.