Jaap van Zweden, the conductor on this album, has served as Music Director of both the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra since 2012 and the New York Philharmonic since 2018.
Compositional Technique
Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony features a four-note motif (D-E flat-C-B) that spells out his initials, D. Sh., in German notation.
Composition History
Mahler's widow, Alma, kept the musical material for his Tenth Symphony secret until 1924, when it became clear that two movements were near completion.
Performer Biography
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, led by Music Director Jaap van Zweden, was the first orchestra in Asia to receive the Gramophone Orchestra of the Year Award in 2019.
Composer Biography
Mahler's Tenth Symphony was likely influenced by the discovery that his wife, Alma, was having an affair with architect Walter Gropius.
Historical Context
Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony was first heard nine months after the death of Joseph Stalin in March 1953, a period of significant political change.
Composition History
Shostakovich's Ninth Symphony in 1945 was considered a "satirical snub" by Soviet authorities, who expected a heroic work celebrating victory over Nazism.
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