The truth is that he displayed enormous energy and commitment as principal conductor of the Vienna Opera and later in New York as principal conductor of the Metropolitan Opera House and the New York Philharmonic. As a conductor, Mahler was outstanding in his interpretations of opera, but in his creative vein, he was outstanding as a symphonic composer and writer of beautiful song cycles for voice with symphony orchestra accompaniment.
In fact, Mahler repeatedly included the human voice as a vital element in his symphonic works. Brahms, Schubert, and Schumann did not do so in their symphonies, and Beethoven only included voice in the last of his symphonies, the mythic Ninth. Nevertheless, there are those who argue that Mahler’s most satisfying works are not his nine symphonies, but his lieder—the song cycles accompanied by orchestra.
The ‘Resurrection’ and the Song Cycles
I don’t know if I agree with that opinion. I just listened again to a recording of Mahler’s second symphony, the “Resurrection.” It was Leonard Bernstein’s version with the London Symphony Orchestra and the wonderful Janet Baker as soloist.
The last portion of the piece is as if the gates to paradise are thrown open. But you have to pay a heavy toll to get there: There is the desperation, fear, and morbid quality that the first movement transmits. (It was originally planned as an independent piece, or symphonic poem, which he titled “Totenfeier,” or “Funeral Celebration.”) Then follow the melancholy of the second movement and the banality of daily life depicted with irony in the third. Finally, we arrive at sublime spiritual peace in the last movement.
If the overblown dimensions of his nine symphonies (ten, if you count the extraordinary Adagio that he titled Symphony but never concluded with more movements) become an obstacle for some listeners, his song cycles turn out to be much more accessible.
Some beautiful works include “Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen” (“Songs of a Wayfarer”), “Des Knaben Wunderhorn” (“The Knave’s Magic Horn”), and the “Rückertlieder.”
Possibly his very best work is “Das Lied von der Erde” (“The Song of the Earth”), a song cycle based on poems translated from Chinese into German, but with the dimensions and concept of sound more suited to a proper symphony. But to my taste, a real masterpiece is “Kindertotenlieder” (“Songs on the Death of Children”), a piece of compositional genius and tremendous emotional significance as it represents reflections on Mahler’s very own daughter’s death.
