Mahler's Fourth Symphony includes a sung text in its final movement, 'Das himmlische Leben' ('The Heavenly Life'), which he composed in 1892.
Critical Reception
Early audiences and critics were challenged by Mahler's Fourth Symphony, as his reputation had largely rested on the vast, apocalyptic Second Symphony.
Performer Biography
The Minnesota Orchestra, founded in 1903, was the first American orchestra to perform in Cuba (2015) and the first professional US orchestra to tour South Africa (2018).
Composer's Artistic Vision
Mahler originally conceived the Fourth Symphony as a symphonic 'Humoresque,' a working-through of unfinished ideas from his Third Symphony.
Performer Biography
Osmo Vänskä, the conductor, won a Grammy Award in 2014 for his recording of Sibelius's First and Fourth Symphonies with the Minnesota Orchestra.
Compositional Technique
Despite a large, late-romantic ensemble, Mahler deployed his forces in the Fourth Symphony with a transparency and lightness more akin to chamber music or 18th-century orchestral models.
Performer Biography
Carolyn Sampson, the soprano soloist, has performed worldwide with major opera companies and orchestras, and has an extensive, award-winning discography.
