Mahler Das Lied Von Der Erde - Reiner Chicago Symphony

One of the best Das Lied von der Erde recordings

Reiner's Das Lied von der Erde, with Maureen Forrester and Richard Lewis, gets less attention than Klemperer's with Christa Ludwig and the incomparable Fritz Wunderlich. But it is almost as good. Ludwig is slightly more sensitive to the text than Forrester, but vocally it's a draw. Lewis, like every other tenor who has sung this piece, suffers from not being Fritz Wunderlich, but among the non-Wunderlich aspirants he's among the best. The orchestral part is sharper and more animated than the slightly languid Klemperer. I have heard the "Living Stereo" reissue of this recording. Reiner is sometimes thought of as a cold if brilliant interpreter, but that is not the case here. The hdtt remastering is not astoundingly better, but it is better, with tighter bass and clearer separation of orchestral sections. If you love Das Lied, you will want this, along with a few other outstanding versions (Klemperer, the stereo Walter, Kubelik or Haitink with Janet Baker in the alto role).