The idea of Mahler 2 in a venue of Cadogan Hall’s proportions is almost ridiculous: the stage is cramped even for an orchestra of non-Mahlerian scale, there’s no organ and no obvious place for the choir. Beyond that, even if the logistics were arranged, surely the piece’s shattering climaxes would be painfully excessive for the audience at such close range? Not a bit of it – with a clever seating plan and careful moderation of balance, the Bruckner Orchester Linz's performance combined both the epic and the intimate in a way one doesn’t often see.
The immediacy of the sound was obvious from the first tremolo of the opening movement, flung out vigorously by Markus Poschner. In such proximity, accuracy is of paramount importance, but it was never lacking, even in the tricky pauses of the opening bass and cello lines. Crystalline textures highlighted every detail of accompanying lines, shining light on subtleties such as a beautifully played horn and clarinet duet in the first movement. There was no compromise in the intense despair which punctuates the movement; the percussion section thundered, led by two timpanists playing on the hand-tuned Viennese calf-hide drums, and the wild col legno passage later on was utterly compelling.
The second and third movements, in which episodes from the dead superman’s life are recounted, demonstrated all the chamber qualities of Mahler’s lesser-scored works. The lightness of touch in the strings allowed the music to flow effortlessly through the Ländler, which Poschner allowed to remain suitably bucolic, and never overly mannered. There were also some fabulous pianissimos, where even a whole section would make themselves scarcely audible. The entry of Theresa Kronthaler for Urlicht was one such moment, where her control and richness of sound produced a passage of paralysing stillness. Later, in the finale, soprano Briggite Geller sang with a beautiful softness and roundness of tone.