Mahler - Symphony No. 6

Mahler - Symphony No. 6

Christoph Eschenbach conducts the Orchestre de Paris in a performance of Mahler's Symphony No. 6. Recorded at the Salle Pleyel, Paris in 2007. The three hammer blows in the finale of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 6 seem prophetic: Mahler lost his position at the Wiener Staatsoper one year after this work premiered in 1906, his daughter died, and Mahler was diagnosed with a cardiac anomaly. A pervading dark atmosphere is nothing unfamiliar in Mahler's Symphonies, but to not have a glorious finale or peaceful acceptance was an absolute first for Mahler. The playful Mahler who referred to Austrian ländlers, birds, and cow bells, is nowhere to be found. In this light, it is no surprise that this work is known as ‘Tragic’, although Mahler himself retracted this title before publication.