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Munich Philharmonic: Mahler / ShostakovichChristiane Karg (soprano), Krysztof Urbański (conductor)

This event is in the past.

Portrait recording of the soprano Christiane Karg
Copyright: Gisela Schenker

Is it all really as it seems? Both Gustav Mahler and Dmitri Shostakovich are masters at playing with duplicity.

This event is in the past.

Is it all really as it seems? Both Gustav Mahler and Dmitri Shostakovich are masters at playing with duplicity.

  • Christiane Karg, soprano
  • Krysztof Urbański, conductor

Referring to his Symphony No 6, Dmitri Shostakovich said he wanted to “convey the moods of spring, joy and youth” and then had the work begin with a grave, brooding, ponderous movement. Was this a response to the prescribed jubilation with which his No 5 ended? Or a game of deception? The world premiere of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No 4, which the composer expressly chose to perform in Munich with the Munich Philharmonic’s predecessor orchestra was also an affront for the audience. After the monumental “Resurrection Symphony” and his Third, which broke sonic boundaries, Mahler wrote his Fourth in a transparent, almost neo-classical style. And even the divine jubilation promised in the finale turn out to be fragile and deceptive.

Programme

  • Gustav Mahler: Symphony No 4 in G major
  • Dimitri Shostakovich: Symphony No 6 in B minor, Op 54