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Posted by Ralph Moore on January 30, 2025, 3:28 pm, in reply to "Re: Mahler 9 Walter"
It is indeed remarkably well restored - and the original 78s must have been pretty good to begin with. OK - it's a little boomy and screechy but as you say, some live, mono recordings from the early 60s are little better. I'm not sure I'd want to listen to it very often in preference to a good, modern recording but the fact that it exists at all - and in such good condition - makes it valuable. It's crazy to think how much close it was Mahler's own time than it is to us. It also gives the lie to the idea that there is vibrato-free, "period" Mahler waiting to be rediscovered. 
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Ralph, curious what you think of the sound of the historic live 1938 Walter 9th, specifically the version available on the Private Reserve channel on YouTube. I just listened to it again, and if you told me it was recorded in 1961, I wouldn't doubt you. Previous Message
Yes; I see what you mean. The big bonuses in the Pristine remastering are the complete absence of hiss and a richer, rounder sound which somehow has more "air" around the aural perspective - but there is element of "boominess" about the bass which is absent in the Sony transfer. Andrew Rose has this to say about his treatment of it for the Pristine issue: "I would point the listener first to the brass to hear what dramatic sound improvements have been made. Gone is the dim, veiled sound of even the most recent "official" Sony CD issues, to be replaced by an openness and clarity that lets these instruments shine through as never before. Suddenly the whole sound of the original recordings sounds cluttered and constricted by comparison.
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Mahler 9 Walter - Ian Peake January 22, 2025, 7:47 pm
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