Mahler: Symphony No. 7
This is a controversial perfomance. Pierre Boulez made his reputation as  a conductor famous for his analytical, antiromantic approach, but in later years  he seems to have mellowed. Not here, though. In many ways, the Seventh is  Mahler's most modern symphony. The emotional impact of the music is less  important than texture, orchestration, and musical architecture. In short, it's  a highly abstract piece, and that's exactly how Boulez treats it. That means a  relatively slow tempo in the first movement to achieve maximum clarity, and  quick speeds in the two "night music" movements, minimizing their  mysterious and romantic qualities, respectively. It's not an approach that  everyone will warm to, but because classical-record collecting means having more  than one version of the same music, it's always rewarding to sample different  interpretations--provided that they're expressed with maximum conviction. And  about this last point, there's no doubt at all.--David Hurwitz