Herbert Blomstedt Talks About Mahler

Herbert Blomstedt was born in the United States of Swedish parents. At age 84 he remains one of the world's great conductors. To see him in action on the podium visit my companion video this week. He conducts Bruckner in a concert from last year's Proms.

This interview on the subject of Mahler is part of a series of interviews with well-known conductors for the Mahler anniversary years. They were organized by Universal Edition, publisher of the authoritative editions of the Mahler scores.

When he was music director of the San Francisco Symphony Blomstedt made numerous excellent recordings for Decca. They are not all readily available today but they are well worth the effort it may take to find them. The sound is superb and the performances nearly always exceptionally good. Lots of Sibelius, Nielsen, Bruckner, Beethoven, Brahms and not least of all Hindemith. The only DVD to date featuring Blomstedt is a recording made of his last concert as head of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra in 2005. It is Bach's B minor Mass and it is extraordinary. His many fine recordings with the Staatskapelle Dresden should not be overlooked either including some powerful Beethoven performances.

Paul E. Robinson