Compare performersGustav Mahler
Mahler, Symphony No. 5, Adagietto, in two recordings
Symphony No. 5 — IV. Adagietto
Mengelberg in 1926 and the Peabody Symphony Orchestra play the Adagietto’s violin melody over the harp.
Recordings in
this comparison
Choose a recording and press Play. Selecting another card continues playback from the matching point in that recording.
Peabody Symphony Orchestra
The strings and harp of the Peabody orchestra, from its complete recording of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony.
Willem Mengelberg, Concertgebouw Orchestra
Concertgebouw Orchestra, Willem Mengelberg
The strings slide between notes together; Mengelberg urges the opening pickups forward and slows the returning theme.
Loading the player…
Each strip shows changes in volume within one recording.
Mahler scored the movement for strings and harp, with a violin melody that repeatedly crosses the bar-line. Mengelberg’s Concertgebouw players slide together between notes and push forward through the short pickups, then slow down when the theme returns. The second performance is by the Peabody Symphony Orchestra, taken from its complete recording of the Fifth.
Tempo map
Time taken compared with Peabody Symphony Orchestra: above 1×, the performer takes longer over the same music; below it, less time.
- Peabody Symphony Orchestra · reference
- Willem Mengelberg, Concertgebouw Orchestra, 1926
Passages compared
Each version plays in card order, for up to 12 seconds of reference music or until the next marked passage, whichever comes first.
- 01
Violin melody over harp
0:20 in the referenceThe violins play the melody over plucked harp notes. The phrase places its weight on notes that resolve only after a delay.
- 02
First climax
2:55 in the referenceThe violins rise higher, with harp arpeggios beneath them. The phrase grows louder, then falls.
- 03
Return of the opening melody
6:55 in the referenceThe harp returns beneath the opening tune. Mengelberg takes the start of this return more slowly.
- 04
High violins, ascending cellos
9:15 in the referenceHigh violins sustain the line while the cellos climb below. Mahler asked for broad bow strokes as the phrase approaches its last swell.
Length of each recording
- Peabody Symphony Orchestra10:21
- Willem Mengelberg, Concertgebouw Orchestra, 19267:17
These times include the lead-in and final fade. Cuts, repeats and disc-side breaks also affect a recording’s length.
Recording notes
Peabody Symphony Orchestra
The strings and harp of the Peabody orchestra, from its complete recording of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony.
Peabody Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore
Listening notes & recording detailsOriginal recording source ↗Willem Mengelberg, Concertgebouw Orchestra, 1926
The strings slide between notes together; Mengelberg urges the opening pickups forward and slows the returning theme.
Concertgebouw Orchestra, Willem Mengelberg
May 1926, Concertgebouw, Amsterdam
Further reading
- Yale University Library — Mengelberg’s rubato and coordinated portamento
- Internet Archive — supplied Columbia L 1798 transfer and metadata
- Wanganui Chronicle, 3 March 1928 — contemporary L 1798 review
- Wikimedia Commons — existing Peabody recording and CC0 declaration
- Peabody upstream item — complete Fifth Symphony and public-domain dedication; upload date is not a session date
- Measured full-file alignment — median confidence 0.863; no trims
- Mengelberg transfer — generated duration and audio features
- Peabody recording — generated duration and audio features
- Mahler — Adagietto full score, Peters plate 9015, pp. 178–182: violin melody, harp and final broad bow strokes
How the recordings are matched
The matching follows sequences of pitches, using a method called dynamic time warping. Every recording is mapped to the reference, so switching between two versions goes through that shared clock. Where several reference times match one point, the middle time is used.
- Willem Mengelberg, Concertgebouw Orchestra, 1926: match score 0.863. Matched passages available.
Switching stays within the matched span, and trimmed recordings keep their original clock times. Match scores describe similarity in the sound.