Symphonie numéro 4

Description

In Mahler's first four symphonies, many original themes come from his own popular poems from the collection Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Youth's Magic Horn). A concrete example is Symphony No. 4, which is built around a simple song, Das himmlische Leben, that Mahler composed eight years earlier, in 1892. The song presents a childlike vision of paradise, which is suggested throughout the first three movements. In the fourth movement, described as 'very comfortable,' the song is heard in its entirety, sung by a soprano, with Mahler's instructions: 'with a serene and childlike expression; without any parody!'