Gustav Mahler - Symphony No. 5: Adagietto

Artist ----  Gustav Mahler

Song   ----  Symphony No. 5: Adagietto

Recorded by  ----  The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1998)

Background: Gustav Mahler (born 1860) was an Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. Mahler was a "late Romantic", part of an ideal that placed Austro-German classical music on a higher plane than other types, through its supposed possession of particular spiritual and philosophical significance. He was one of the last major composers of a line which includes, among others, Beethoven, Schubert, Liszt, Wagner, Bruckner and Brahms. From these antecedents Mahler drew many of the features that were to characterise his music. His Symphony No. 5 was composed in 1901 and 1902. The fourth movement "Adagietto" is arguably Mahler's most famous single piece of music, and is the most frequently performed extract from Mahler's works.

Trivia: World premiere was 1904 in Cologne - conducted by the composer. After the premiere, Mahler is reported to have said, “Nobody understood it. I wish I could conduct the first performance fifty years after my death.”

My two cents: A classical piece as your Song of the Day. This won't be the usual case, don't worry, but this piece of music is really worth a try. A lot of people consider this the most beautiful music in the world, you should decide for yourself. For myself, this is a very beautiful piece of art and music, a wonderful and emotional, almost uplifting feeling starts to grow inside me when listening this. It also reminds me a bit of movie soundtracks. I learned about this classical piece during my preparation to study music (what I did not study in the end), so the music really reminds me of that special part of my life.

Cite: "The symphony must be like the world. It must embrace everything." - Mahler to Sibelius