G. Mahler – Symphony No. 2 @Lisbon

SYNOPSIS:

Listening to Symphony No. 2 by Mahler (1860-1911), which the author gave the title “Resurrection”, is a reason for intense meditation. The idea was born when Gustav Mahler was still writing the first symphony, feeling the need to give his own identity to the themes that are now found in one of the masterpieces of music ever. It can be said, in fact, that this second symphony follows the spiritual path of its author, noting that at the beginning one notices anguish and suffering, which gradually evolve towards a liberating spirituality. This dilemma develops into a determining search.

In the final part, the soprano tells us: “Ah, believe me: you were not born in vain / It was not in vain that you lived, you suffered”. To which the choir and alto respond: “What was created must perish! / What perished will rise again! / Stop shaking! / Prepare to live!” And so the composer anticipates the final moment, in which, after the doubts, inherent to the very nature of faith, the choir triumphantly proclaims: “With wings, which I gained for myself, / I will disappear! / I will die so I can live!” Here we are at a crucial moment in the author’s own individual journey, which directly involves considering the work as an illustration of the existential journey. “You will be resurrected, yes, you will be resurrected, / My heart, in an instant! / What you fought for / God will take you!”

The end of the symphony brings us a recapitulation of the path taken: the funereal atmosphere at the beginning, the theme “Dies Irae”, which corresponds to the awareness of smallness and imperfection, followed by the orchestral march that illustrates the procession to the “Judgment Final”, until the last trumpet of the Apocalypse sounds. And so the final symphonic cantata, already mentioned here, begins – with the poem “Resurrection” by Friedrich G. Klopstock (1724-1803), in an extraordinary crescendo that represents the affirmation of authentic joy, assumed as a vital force by the composer, at a crucial moment in his troubled life, in the name of a strong and renewing hope.

PROGRAM:
Gustav MAHLER (1860-1911) – Symphony No. 2 in C Minor “Resurrection”
I. Allegro Maestoso
II. Andante Moderato
III. In ruhiger fliessender Bewegung [In Fluent and Calm Movement]
IV. Sehr feierlich, aber schlicht [Very Solemn, But Simple]
V. In Tempo des Scherzo, kräftig — Langsam [In the Tempo of the Scherzo — Energetic — Slow]

Orquestra Filarmónica Portuguesa

Coro Sinfónico Lisboa Cantat

Coro Polifónico da Lapa

Bárbara Barradas, soprano

Cátia Moreso, mezzo-soprano

Osvaldo Ferreira, artistic direction