Mahler
's
Symphony No. 3 in D minor
is the longest of his nine, and in fact, the longest commonly played symphony in the orchestral repertory. Not satisfied with that, conductor
Semyon Bychkov
and the
Czech Philharmonic
turn in a performance that is five minutes slower than the average for the work, with a majestic opening movement of more than 35 minutes. All this musical space is devoted to the smallest musical details, with intensity and climaxes carefully smoothed out. One might call it a virtuoso act of conductor's control, with details seeming to circulate in a kind of metaphysical stasis like a giant version of an Austrian snow globe. Or one might call it tedious. This will be up to individual listeners, but the performance is doubtless impressive in several respects. One is the performance of mezzo-soprano
Catriona Morison
in the fourth movement, the Misterioso Third setting
Nietzsche
's "Midnight Song" from Also sprach Zarathustra. She just seems to hang in the air in exactly the way
Bychkov
intends. The
is absolutely in its element here, and one can revel in the orchestral detail for as long as one wishes to. The Rudolfinum in Prague, built in 1885, breathes the spirit of this music. Listeners have shown up to make their own decisions, putting the album on classical best-seller charts in early 2025, and it is certainly worth making one's own. ~ James Manheim