Daniele Gatti, the conductor on this album, has been the chief conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra since the 2016/17 season and has held numerous other prestigious conducting roles.
Compositional Technique
In the second movement, Mahler calls for the solo violin to be tuned a whole tone higher to achieve a sharp, biting sound, portraying 'Death the Fiddler'.
Composition History
Mahler composed the Fourth Symphony 'in reverse order', starting with the final movement, which sets a song he had completed eight years prior.
Composer Biography
Due to his busy schedule as an opera conductor at the Vienna Hofoper, Mahler could only compose during the summer months.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Gustav Mahler considered his Symphony No. 4 to be the conclusion of a 'fully self-contained tetralogy' of his first four symphonies, which grappled with existential questions.
Composition History
Mahler initially conceived his Fourth Symphony as a six-movement 'Humoresque', with three movements based on his earlier Wunderhorn songs.
Critical Reception
The premiere of Mahler's Fourth Symphony in 1901 received a positive audience response, but most critics were disappointed, finding it 'too technical and lacked originality and feeling'.
