Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Overture to Incidental Music to Egmont, Op 84
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Symphony No 9 in D major
American Symphony Orchestra / Jascha Horenstein
rec. live 9 November, 1969 (Beethoven); 10 November 1969 (Mahler), Carnegie Hall, New York
High Definition Tape Transfers HDTT 22750 [2 CDs: 92]

There have been a few Horenstein performances of Mahler’s Ninth issued on CD over the years; in his notes accompanying this release, John Haley references no fewer than six, not counting this latest one. Among those of which I’m aware, there was his 1952 commercial recording for Vox reissued by Pristine Audio (review); confusingly, on my copy of the Vox set the performance is said to date from 1954, but that must be an error. I’ve not heard Pristine’s transfer of that recording but I admired their restoration of a 1960 live reading of the work (review), Both of those recordings involved the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. There’s also a tremendous performance with the LSO from the 1966 Proms which was justly praised by Tony Duggan. In his review of that performance, Tony references a Music & Arts release of a different 1966 London performance, which I’ve not heard. I mention that Music & Arts release because I understand that the same label issued a November 1969 recording of Horenstein conducting the American Symphony Orchestra in the Ninth. However, I believe that is not the same as the performance here issued by HDTT. Horenstein conducted the orchestra on two consecutive days, 9 and 10 November 1969, in the same programme and I’m informed that the Music & Arts release was of the 9 November performance of the symphony. Here we have the following day’s performance which I imagine benefitted from the fact that conductor and orchestra were playing the piece together for the second time. This 10 November performance was the last occasion on which Horenstein conducted the Ninth; furthermore, I understand it has never been commercially released until now.

The American Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski; he was its conductor until 1972. John Haley tells us that Stokowski “built the orchestra from younger players with no restrictions of race or gender”. Haley adds that Stoki was “demanding” of his young musicians. It was at Stokowski’s invitation that Horenstein came to conduct the orchestra in 1969; moreover, it appears that he specifically asked Horenstein to conduct Mahler’s Ninth. The inclusion in the programme of a short opening item was Stokowski’s idea too, it seems. John Haley says that he was concerned about the predilection of American audiences to arrive late, in which case beginning with the huge expanse of the first movement of the Mahler would not have been a good idea. HDTT have given us the performance of the Beethoven overture from the first of the two concerts; the recording from the 10 November concert was not available, 

Normally, I discuss the recorded sound at the end of a review but in this case, I think it’s pertinent to cover the issue first. I can do no better than to quote from John Haley’s booklet notes. He tells us that the performances “were recorded surreptitiously in Carnegie Hall on a portable tape recorder by an audience member who was an experienced live taper. HDTT is fortunate to have had access to the actual original live tapes recorded in Carnegie Hall as its source. One of the coincidental benefits of such a live recording is the complete absence of any dynamic compression. The equipment used to make the recordings is unknown. We carefully corrected the pitch and removed as much audience noise as feasibly possible…The present recording is genuine stereo but it must be remembered that there was no mic set-up possible in the circumstances, so a mild criticism is that there is relatively little in the way of a typical stereo soundstage captured.” I find it hard to imagine how the person who recorded the performances “got away with it”. One imagines that he must have placed his microphones on a stand; it’s amazing that no officious usher noticed. I wonder if he occupied the same seat for both concerts – or ones that were in close proximity to each other. Possibly that wasn’t the case because I got more of a sense when listening to the Beethoven overture that I was experiencing the performance from a seat in the stalls; the orchestra seems to be a bit more distant than is the case with the Mahler. In the Beethoven I noticed that the violins and trumpets had an extremely bright sound; this wasn’t quite so apparent in the Mahler.  As I always do when reviewing a historical release, I listened exclusively through loudspeakers. Had I listened through headphones I might have picked up more audience noise but my experience was that HDTT have been very successful in removing much of it. Inevitably, given the source of the recordings, balances are imperfect. In the Mahler, the brass and percussion rather dominate the climaxes – and the glockenspiel is larger than life in the Rondo-Burleske. However, I found that my ears adjusted and though the sound is less than ideal as compared to a recording made with the benefit of a professional microphone set-up, I felt that this recording gave me a jolly good sense both of the playing of the ASO and of Horenstein’s interpretation.

The Egmont overture proved to be a good choice for a concert opener. I was struck at once by the impressive weight in the ASO’s string chords during the opening bars. There’s plenty of tension in the slow introduction and the rest of the performance is strong and trenchant, culminating in a blazing coda.      

Though timings can be an imperfect guide to a performance, I think it’s interesting to note Horenstein’s timings for each movement in the three live recordings by him that I own. I’ve also added the timings for the 1952 Vox recordings, even though this was made under studio conditions.

Of particular note are his timings for the first and last movements. In 1966 he was a bit more expansive overall in the fourth movement as compared with the other performances and the expansiveness was significantly greater in the way he played the first movement in 1966. At the risk of making a sweeping generalisation, in 1969 Horenstein reverted, to some extent, to his 1960 approach, at least as far as the stopwatch is concerned; if we compare his readings of the huge first movement in 1966 and 1969 one might say that this gives the lie to the old adage that conductors slow up as they grow older. Actually, what I think these timings most powerfully suggest is that Horenstein consistently rethought his approach to the work.

This performance of the symphony begins tenderly but soon the intensity builds. Horenstein’s tempi are often quite flowing and I like that approach. However, even if the speeds are fluent, there’s no lack of bite and power when it’s needed. Within a few minutes it’s obvious that the ASO are playing with great commitment and that remains the case throughout the symphony. Another consistent feature of this movement is that when the music becomes quiet, Horenstein and his orchestra continue to maintain tension. The main climax of the movement (just after 17:00) has savage intensity, though it’s mildly disconcerting that as the turmoil subsides the quiet tam-tam is much more audible than is usually the case; a quirk of the recording I’m certain. A little later, I was delighted by the clarity with which Mahler’s contrapuntal writing can be heard (from around 20:30) and in the closing pages (from 23:03) Horenstein ensures that the music’s fragile melancholy is conveyed. He may not linger as much as some conductors do in these pages but the interpretation is still very satisfying.

At the start of the second movement, Horenstein’s way with the minor-key Ländler material is sturdy and deliberate; to be honest, I feel it’s a bit too deliberate. Whenever that music reappears, his approach is consistent. When the second, major-key dance appears (2:59) the pace picks up, as it should; this is much more in accord with what I’d expect. From this point on – except whenever the opening Ländler returns – the way the music is delivered is strong, spiky and firmly projected. It’s a very successful performance, overall. The Rondo-Burleske is edgy; Horenstein obviously insists on clear articulation and the ASO deliver exactly what he wants. The lyrical episode, led off by the trumpet, (from 6:50) is taken at quite a brisk pace by comparison with many other conductors. By so doing, Horenstein signals a clear-eyed approach with no excessive sentimentality; it’s refreshing. In the last two or three minutes, Horenstein whips up the tempo and drives the music to a frenzied conclusion.

The preceding three movements have been impressive but in the concluding Adagio the performance goes up to a different, more exalted level. My attention was grabbed right away by the spacious, patrician manner in which Horenstein gets the ASO strings to play the opening paragraphs; the way they sustain the long musical lines is most impressive. As the movement progresses, the playing is both intense and dedicated; I admired the depth and weight of the ASO’s string tone. As I listened, it seemed to me that everything about the performance just seemed right; Horenstein shapes the music eloquently but without fuss. As the intensity – and volume – increases, I think there’s a case to be made that the horn section as recorded is too prominent; but having said that, I can live with this since the horns’ collective contribution is so fine. Prepared with great understanding, the main climax (15:57) is a great moment – as it should be. In the extended passage that follows the horns, as recorded, are once again more to the fore than would usually be the case but they play with noble tone and, though prominent, they don’t overwhelm the rest of the orchestra. As the movement winds down to its tender, withdrawn conclusion, Horenstein shows his mastery of the music; he obtains playing of no little refinement and I had the sense that all the players involved at this point in the score were on the edge of their seats, ensuring that each and every one of them does their best to do full justice to their conductor’s vision. The concluding Adagissimo is played with the utmost concentration. This is an outstanding account of Mahler’s great movement. As I said earlier, this was to be the last time that Horenstein was to conduct this symphony; his last word on the subject could hardly have been more distinguished.

A final word on the recorded sound. Comparing the sound on the three live recordings – I exclude the 1952 Vox, as it was studio made – it seems to me that the best sound is on the 1966 LSO recording (BBC Legends). I’m not sure, though, how easy it is to get hold of the BBC Legends disc nowadays. The 1960 VSO performance (Pristine) offers sound that is good, though it has some drawbacks, as I noted when I reviewed the disc. This present HDTT recording also has drawbacks, though these are not the fault of the label; they reflect the unusual circumstances under which the performance was captured on tape. One thing I should say – and again I’m sure this will reflect the provenance of the recording – is that, compared to the other two versions, I had to boost the volume control quite a bit when playing the HDTT recording. If you already have either the 1960 or the 1966 recordings in your collection you may feel that’s sufficient but I would urge you to hear this 1969 performance as well, not least to experience the outstanding rendition of the final Adagio.   

It was hoped and intended that Jascha Horenstein would return to conduct the ASO at a future date but it was not to be. I suspect that this one encounter with him was one which none of the orchestra’s members would forget in a hurry. It’s a memorable performance of Mahler’s Ninth. Yes, there are sonic limitations but I’d still urge you to hear it. The transfers and remastering work on the original source material has been done by Robert Witrak of HDTT. I’d say he’s done a fine job and he deserves our gratitude for enabling us to hear for the first time in nearly 56 years this fine account of Mahler’s Ninth.

John Quinn