Symphony number 3 Digipack

Description

A symphony like the world
The third symphony of Gustav Mahler, lasting at least an hour and a half, is his longest work. It is also an exalted and radiant hymn to nature, to the human being, to the world, and to life. For this hymn, Mahler took all the space he needed and used generous means: six movements, an extremely large orchestral ensemble, but also an alto voice, a children's choir, and a women's choir facilitating the transmission of the message carried by this symphony through the sung texts – as in his second symphony and later also in his fourth and eighth symphonies. Its scope makes this symphony a work that constitutes a complete concert program in itself. It thus does not tolerate the proximity of any other work. Drastically, as never before, Mahler has here shifted the boundaries of the traditional genre of the symphony, with only the example of Beethoven's ninth symphony and its finale for soloists and choir. Natalie Bauer-Lechner, an alto and friend of Mahler, extensively recounted the content of her exchanges with the composer. Mahler confided to her the following: ‘But symphony indeed means for me: to build a universe with all the means of available technique.’ It is no coincidence that Strauss wrote to Mahler, even before the complete creation of the work in 1901: ‘No. 3 thus becomes a concert in itself!’ Ivan Fischer