GUSTAV MAHLER Symphony No . 5 , IV . Adagietto
“ I am hitting my head against the walls , but the walls are giving way .” – Mahler
ABOUT THE COMPOSER
Born 1860 in Kalište , Bohemia ; died 1911 in Vienna , Austria
• Gustav Mahler was born into a large Jewish family in what was part of the Austrian Empire . As a young child , Mahler discovered his grandparent ’ s piano and took to it immediately , earning a reputation as a child prodigy . He then went on to study at the Vienna Conservatory .
• Although regarded as one of the most prolific composers in all of classical music , Mahler was most famous during his lifetime for his work as a conductor , receiving praise from Brahms , Tchaikovsky , and Vaughan Williams for his interpretations . Vaughan Williams reportedly could not sleep for two days after seeing Mahler conduct in London .
• Mahler became anxious to reserve more time for writing music and established a pattern of spending his summers composing . He received his first relative success as a composer at the premiere of his Second Symphony , although he would not receive full recognition of his compositional genius until after his death .
• Mahler ’ s music saw few performances in the 40 years following his death , in part due to his music being banned in most of Europe during the Nazi regime , which labeled the Jewish composer a “ degenerate .” In the 1960s , his music saw a revival , thanks to conductors such as Leonard Bernstein . He quickly became one of the most performed and recorded composers .
THE WORLD AT A GLANCE
1902
MUSIC Jean Sibelius ’ Symphony No . 2
ART Auguste Rodin ’ s The Thinker
FUN FACT
Mahler maintained a friendship with Sigmund Freud whom he went to for advice from time to time .
ABOUT THE PIECE
• Written in 1902 , the Adagietto is the most famous movement from Mahler ’ s most frequently performed symphony . It is said to represent a love song to his wife Alma .
• Leonard Bernstein conducted a performance of the work at the funeral mass for Robert F . Kennedy .
LITERATURE Beatrix Potter ’ s The Tale of Peter Rabbit
HISTORY The eruption of Mount Pelée in Martinique
14 BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA