Gustav Mahler accompanying on piano roll 1905

A piano roll made in 1905 of Gustav Mahler playing the accompaniment in a short extract from one of his Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen ('Songs of a Wayfarer'). This was his first song cycle, and this theme was later to appear in the first movement of his first Symphony. A present day voice is superimposed on top.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Gustav
• Mahler
• piano
• roll
• Lieder
• eines
• fahrenden
• Gesellen
• 'Songs
• of
• Wayfarer'

[mahler151]

It sounds WAAAAAAAAAAAY too clear to be him, also if it's a piano roll, where'd the girl's voice come from?

[chainstoking]

@mahler151 The piano part sounds clear because it was recorded on a Welte Mignon Piano, which is certainly something more than a mere piano roll. The soprano part was superimposed on top of it obviously much more recently. Sorry I have no more details than this but I recorded it direct from BBC Radio 3 probably about 4 or 5 years ago but did not get any more details than that.

[jeanpi314159]

@mahler151

This is Claudine Carlson ( a french singer born in 1950 living in the USA) singing . The cd is Golden Legacy 2003 or IMP from 1993. I think she sings it in 1989 ...

There are other cd from this 1905 Welte Mignon recording . It's interesting , because it's played on different pianos . Absolutely fascinating ...

[chainstoking]

@jeanpi314159

Thank you very much for that information.

[acortot]

tempos nowadays are much slower.. due to the big fat pianos, but also to the Hollywood aesthetic of tortured, slow passion... they were much more 'natural' in those days, I believe...

[TuboEspectador]

Do I get it that Mahler (and perhaps others) were doing the equivalent of Karaoke? I am quite amazed! This is so much fun to listen to! Thanks!

[ChuckyJesus666]

@thepdog69 I'm wondering also....all these piano rolls I have heard with Mahler playing seem awfully fast.....

[thepdog69]

Can we be sure that the tempo is correct? How do the piano rolls work in terms of speed?

[mahler151]

@chainstoking I didn't read all of the description, but please do forgive my for my ignorance.