Rafael Payare and his intelligent take on Mahler’s 5th

Rafael Payare is a Venezuelan conductor who was appointed the Musical Director of the prestigious Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal in 2019. Payare recently decided to make his debut as a recording artist with Mahler’s monumental fifth symphony.
This work by Mahler holds a special place in my heart. It was the first symphony I experienced live in concert back when I was living in Caracas. Since then, it has changed the way I experience music. And considering that music is one of my strongest passions, it is not outrageous to claim that this work has changed my life. That being said, I have been listening to numerous versions of this symphony throughout the last decade. And I have to admit that I ended up pleasantly surprised with what Payare and his Canadian orchestra have accomplished. This new take on Mahler’s fifth sounds fresh, invigorating and astonishingly clear. We need to keep in mind that this symphony is rather delicate, given its propensity to allow conductors to delve into narcissistic approaches, so the fact that Payare was able to not fall into that temptation is very eloquent to his maturity as a conductor. Payare has certainly come off as an intelligent musician, with an impressive capacity to handle the sonic contrast a work like this demands from every section of the orchestra. My only criticism towards this recording is that at times I get the feeling that there’s an excess in control on the behalf of its conductor. Mahler loves to build worlds that he then just after loves to destroy, so a little bit of chaos actually makes up the essence of this symphony. Nonetheless I am very satisfied with Payare’s debut in the world of recordings. If his first work has attained such peaks of excellence, then I can't wait for what he has to offer in the near future.