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Mahler - Symphony no.7

£14.26

In stock - available for despatch within 1 working day

Label: Alpha

Cat No: ALPHA1206

Barcode: 3701624512067

Format: CD

Number of Discs: 1

Genre: Orchestral

Release Date: 13th March 2026

Works

Mahler, Gustav

Symphony no.7 in E minor

Artists

Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich

Conductor

Paavo Jarvi

Works

Mahler, Gustav

Symphony no.7 in E minor

Artists

Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich

Conductor

Paavo Jarvi

About

Paavo Järvi and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich continue their complete cycle of Mahler symphonies with the Seventh, considered one of his most complex and challenging symphonies: “The Mahler we encounter in Symphony No. 7 is more complex, darker and more philosophical than the Mahler we know from his previous works,” says Paavo Järvi. Mahler, who was extremely busy in his role as director of the Vienna Opera, composed this symphony on the shores of Lake Wörthersee in Austria during the summers of 1904 and 1905. Also known as “Song of the Night”, this symphony is characterised by rich instrumentation (including a guitar and mandolin in the fourth movement) and spectacular orchestral effects: “Here, nature roars,” Mahler said of the tenor horn solo at the beginning of the work.

Sound/Video

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1

1a. Langsam (Adagio)
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1b. Nicht schleppen
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1c. Allegro risoluto, ma non troppo
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1d. A tempo (sempre l’istesso)
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1e. Subito Allegro I. Ziemlich hastig
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1f. Adagio (Tempo der Einleitung)
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1g. Allegro come prima. Maestoso
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2a. Nachtmusik I: Allegro moderato
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2b. Sempre l’istesso tempo. Nicht eilen, sehr gemächlich
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2c. Tempo
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3a. Scherzo: Schattenhaft – Fliessend, aber nicht zu schnell
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3b. Trio
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3c. Wieder wie zu Anfang. Nicht eilen
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4a. Nachtmusik II: Andante amoroso
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4b. Fig. 197
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5a. Rondo-Finale: Tempo I. Allegro ordinario
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5b. Gemessen! Nicht Schnell! Tempo II (Allegro moderato ma energico)
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5c. Tempo I (Halbe wie die Viertel des Tempo I)
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5d. Sempre l’istesso Tempo

Europadisc Review

While the outer movements of Gustav Mahler’s symphonies may make the biggest splashes and get the loudest cheers, it’s often the inner movements that are the key to both the music’s inner world and its success in performance. That’s certainly true of the ‘Resurrection’ Symphony and the Fifth. And it applies just as much to the Seventh Symphony, long viewed as Mahler’s most enigmatic and problematic work in the genre. (The Eighth is sui generis, and an entirely different can of worms.) Any successful performance of the Seventh must bring out the contrasting natures of the two Nachtmusik movements (the night wandering of the first, the amorous intimacy of the second), as well as the downright spooky Scherzo, containing some of the most macabre music Mahler ever wrote.

The new recording by Paavo Järvi and Zurich’s Tonhalle Orchestra (the third instalment to date of their Mahler cycle on the Alpha label) nails the contrasting profiles of these movements, their often pointillist textures and unique sonorities, to perfection. The opening horn solo of the first Nachtmusik and the slightly tart oboe sound are part of a distinctly central European character from an orchestra which has had this music in its repertoire for more than a century (championed by Swiss maestro Volkmar Andreae in 1919). Järvi is excellent at pointing up edgy rhythms that positively leap off the page, but when the music relaxes into a more Alpine character he is happy to let things unfold naturally.

Few recordings of the central Scherzo quite so successfully convey its phantasmic nature as this, where every woodwind gesture, every percussive thwack, every swirl in the strings is brilliantly caught without ever impeding the music’s eerie progress. Halfway through the return of the Scherzo proper, the quintuple forte pizzicato snap from the cellos and basses (like the grotesque bassoon notes at the return of the opening) is enough to lift listeners out of their seats. Even the more relaxed Trio section, with its string and woodwind solos, has a disquieting feel to it.

Julia Becker’s violin solo, launching the more relaxed and personal second Nachtmusik, provides much-needed emotional balm, and the guitar and mandolin passages – so often over-highlighted on recordings – are here ideally caught. It is at the lower end of the registral spectrum that Järvi’s focus brings real dividends, so that even in this – the closest we get in this work to a ‘slow’ movement – a spectral feeling is never far away.

The same care over local detail and overall momentum and drive is evident in the two outer movements. In the first, the funereal tread of the opening (supposedly inspired by the movement of the oars as Mahler was being rowed across an Alpine lake), the all-important solo on the tenor horn, and the sharply dotted figuration, are all held in perfect balance, and the main Allegro when it arrives has just the right amount of lift and energy. The frequent changes of mood and tempo are expertly negotiated, the dynamic gradients well-observed without being fetishised.

It is the Rondo-Finale that can so often undo an otherwise successful performance of the Seventh Symphony. It is fatal to overthink this music, but Järvi (like Kirill Petrenko with the Bavarian State Orchestra five years ago) allows the ebullience full yet unforced head, and the Tonhalle Orchestra’s collective virtuosity is lightly worn. Of course, it takes great skill to make such difficult music sound so natural, and this performance’s rhythmic acuity and tonal refinement and depth are second to none. Yet there is no sense of that micromanagement that sometimes mars the Seventh on disc, and the peal of bells on the final pages is simply joyous – as life-affirming in its way as any other Mahler symphony. Järvi and his forces bring out all of the music’s abundant character while never slipping into exaggerated caricature, which is no mean feat in Mahler of all composers!

Nevertheless, there are some outstanding accounts of the Seventh in the catalogue. Bernstein’s 1965 New York remains a reference recording, while Kondrashin’s volatile Leningrad performance of ten years later remains a personal favourite. Among more recent recordings, Kirill Petrenko and Simon Rattle – with different Munich-based orchestras – stand out from the crowd. However, this new disc from Zurich, recorded with a combination of warmth and immediacy in the orchestra’s eponymous home, stands up to the very best of them. Heartily recommended!

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Condition	Description
New	Brand new item, only ever sourced from the official UK distributor. Usually seal-wrapped, although a minority of labels do not use seal-wrap.
Used - Mint	Used item in excellent condition. Not usually seal-wrapped.
Used - Good	Used item with some minor signs of wear and tear. Never seal-wrapped.
Used - Acceptable	Used item with obvious scuffs or cosmetic damage to the case or booklet. Never seal-wrapped.

Condition	Description
New	Brand new item, only ever sourced from the official UK distributor. Usually seal-wrapped, although a minority of labels do not use seal-wrap.
Used - Mint	Used item in excellent condition. Not usually seal-wrapped.
Used - Good	Used item with some minor signs of wear and tear. Never seal-wrapped.
Used - Acceptable	Used item with obvious scuffs or cosmetic damage to the case or booklet. Never seal-wrapped.

Mahler - Symphony no.7

In stock - available for despatch within 1 working day

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Contents

Works

Artists

Conductor

Works

Artists

Conductor

About

Sound/Video

Paused

Europadisc Review

Also Available

£14.26

£33.99

£14.26

£33.99

£33.99

Condition Information

Condition Information