Gustav Mahler was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th century Austro-German tradition and the modernism of the early 20th century.

This recording completes Pierre Boulez's highly acclaimed survey of Bartók's major orchestral works on Deutsche Grammophon. Boulez has once again gathered an extraordinary team of musicians: Yuri Bashmet, Gidon Kremer, Pierre-Laurent Aimard--with his long-term recital partner Tamara Stefanovich--and two of the world's most esteemed ensembles: the Berliner Philharmoniker and London Symphony Orchestra. These all-new recordings present less well-known works by the Hungarian composer in riveting performances that will surely become benchmarks. DG exclusive artist Aimard teams up with Boulez in an intensely powerful and thoughtful performance.

This recording was nominated for the 2000 Grammy Awards for "Best Classical Album" and "Best Instrumental Solosist(s) Performance (with Orchestra)."
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Pierre Boulez, and Béla Bartók have become a winning combination. Three of the Chicago/Boulez Bartók recordings which preceded this one received Grammy Awards. Boulez has developed his relationship with the Chicago over Bartók's music, through countless rehearsals and performances. The results are stunning, time and time again. Here, young violinist Gil Shaham is added to the mix for performances which strike directly to the works' cores.
The Second Concerto comes from the early days of World War II and is a delicious blend of modal touches, Hungarian flavors, and crunchy not-quite-diatonic harmonies. The two Rhapsodies were written almost ten years earlier--originally for violin and piano, but orchestrated soon after--and evoke Hungarian and Romanian dances and tunes. Shaham tears into the solo parts with tremendous energy, and their virtuosic passages fairly fly off the page. Boulez and Chicago back him with power and sensitivity, their command of the music (or, perhaps, the music's command of them) complete. The recordings were made following a series of highly acclaimed concerts in late 1998, and DG would seem to have produced another winner.

01 Piano Concerto in G - 1 Allegramente
02 Piano Concerto in G - 2 Adagio assai
03 Piano Concerto in G - 3 Presto
04 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 1 Modéré - très franc
05 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 2 Assez lent - avec une expression intense
06 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 3 Modéré
07 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 4 Assez animé
08 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 5 Presque lent - dans un sentiment intime
09 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 6 Assez vif
10 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 7 Moins vif
11 Valses nobles et sentimentales - 8 Epilogue (Lent)
12 Piano Concerto for the left hand in D

Piano Concerto No. 1
Krystian Zimerman Piano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Piano Concerto No. 2
Leif Ove Andsnes Piano
Berliner Philharmoniker

Piano Concerto No. 3
Helène Grimaud Piano
London Symphony Orchestra

Pierre Boulez Conductor

Amazon.com essential recording
Pollini is so much a part of the contemporary music scene that it's amazing to realize that the earliest material on this disc (Stravinsky and Prokofiev) dates to the 1940s. These two performances retain their power to startle and amaze, both through Pollini's seemingly effortless virtuosity and through the immediacy of his musical conceptions. This Prokofiev is a close rival even to Richter's. Webern, from six years later, is so colorful and well organized that it makes the difficult music almost easy to listen to. Not many listeners will put up with Boulez's obscurities, but there is still plenty to make the disc worthwhile. --Leslie Gerber

Recording: Cleveland, Masonic Auditorium, 3/1991 (Rhapsodie) & 3/1993
Total time: 70:58