Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 2 in C minor (1888-94)
- Siobhan Stagg soprano
- Claudia Mahnke mezzosoprano
- Bürgerchor
- Michael Ostrzyga Rehearsal choir
- Gürzenich-Orchester Köln
- Lorenzo Viotti conductor
Introduction 50 minutes before the concert by Michael Struck-Schloen
The Gürzenich Orchestra is back from its summer break and kicks off the colourful and diverse season with a work of the length of a feature film: Worlds of emotions are stirred up as Gustav Mahler takes us on a trip out of grim darkness and into radiant light, living through moments of idyllic joy and bizarre plunges. His symphonies are emotional tight rope walks in which, with somnambulant confidence, he composes death dances, exuberant happiness, biting humour, and scenes of apocalypse or redemption. This monumental 2nd symphony calls for two female solo voices and mixed choir. Together with the renowned singers Siobhan Stagg and Claudia Mahnke, as well as Cologne’s Citizens’ Choir, the Gürzenich Orchestra celebrates its deep connection with Gustav Mahler’s music – music which takes us through the thick of human life with all its longing, despair, joy and confusion. Gustav Mahler describes the existential questions posed in his 2nd Symphony:»Why have you lived? Why have you suffered? Is it all some big, terrible joke?«
