*** 1/2 GUSTAV MAHLER: Symphony No. 4 ALBAN BERG: Seven Early Songs; Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly, conductor; Barbara Bonney, soprano; Decca : *** ANTON BRUCKNER Symphony No. 7 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly, conductor; Decca

Together again, after all these years, Mahler and Bruckner on two CDs from the great Concertgebouw ensemble represent a felicitous reunion. Splendid and clarified playing from all sections of this superlatively accomplished orchestra is often, if not consistently, matched by the conductor’s cool temperament and analytic vision of these works. Mahler’s beloved Fourth reaches its emotional peak in that wide-ranging, cathartic third movement; thereafter, in the finale, Bonney’s pointed singing adds to the orchestral canvas the extra depth the composer planned. The American soprano also excels at the chromatic and poignant Early Songs of Berg, orchestrated by the composer. Chailly lets the orchestra shine in Bruckner’s earnest Seventh Symphony, which seems shorter than usual, a happy situation.