Certainly not one of the Great Recordings of the Century, Barbirolli’s Mahler 9 offers nothing that isn’t bettered by any number of performances new and old, including those by Bernstein, Karajan, Pesek, Klemperer, Ancerl, Levine, Ozawa, Tennstedt, and Masur. It is neither particularly well played nor insightfully interpreted. Tentative ensemble and characterless results from winds and brass produce denatured textures and limited dynamic range. Such moments as the great first-movement climax, with wimpy brass and percussion, or the polyphonic string interlude at the movement’s center (based on its second subject), offer clear evidence of an orchestra either unfamiliar with the music or unprepared to meet its demands. But Barbirolli deserves just as much of the blame for this particular non-happening. To cite just one example where the problems come straight from the podium: the funeral march passage leading to the recapitulation severely lacks tension and any sense of onward progress.
The same dearth of vividness afflicts the two inner movements: in the second, the first Ländler lacks cloddishness, while the waltz fails to capture any sense of frenzy. Barbirolli leads one of the least nasty and exciting versions of the Rondo:Burleske on disc, with a particularly flat-footed account of the closing pages. The finale, at 23 minutes a bit swift by today’s standards (and none the worse for that) comes off best, as might be expected, but it still fails to generate much intensity at its climaxes. Cavernous recorded sound places trumpets and trombones too far back in the mix, perhaps a kindness given their sub-par performance; but the remastering has marginally improved clarity and dynamic range, as if that matters when the musical results are so thoroughly second-rate and lacking in conviction.
