Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Symphony No. 8 (Mahler)" in English language version.
The earliest commercial recording generally available came from a performance at Ahoy Hall in Rotterdam for the Holland Festival of 1955. It was conducted by a Mahler pioneer, Eduard Flipse, who came from the Dutch Mahler tradition. This recording was much beloved of a previous generation of Mahlerites (not least for the unforgettable sound of the boys choruses—like a parliament of street urchins straight out of Fagin's kitchen) since it was, for some time, the only recording you could get and still has much to tell us.