Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp Minor
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
THE STORY
Gustav Mahler was aware of the revolutionary nature of his Fifth Symphony. In a letter to his new wife Alma in 1904, during rehearsals for the work’s premiere in Cologne, he despaired: “Heavens, what is the public to ... say to this primeval music, this foaming, roaring, raging sea of sound, to these dancing stars, to these breathtaking, iridescent, and flashing breakers? ... Oh that I might give my symphony its first performance fifty years after my death!”
The work’s breaking of convention begins with its structure. The first part consists of the first and second movements, both dark and stormy in their effect. The second part is the massive third movement, acting as a pivot from the ominous opening part to the triumphant closing. The third and final part, consisting of the fourth and fifth movements, is an exploration of love and celebration.
Mahler’s use of the orchestra is also striking. Its massive forces are divided— small subgroups interact with one another, juxtaposed with the full might of the orchestra. The result is an incredible variety of soundscapes.
LISTEN FOR
- The trumpet solo opening the Symphony with an homage to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, mirroring its short-short-short-long rhythmic motif
- The joyous hymn-like brass chorale near the end of the second movement, portending the boisterous ending in the fifth movement
- The solo horn acting as a protagonist in the third movement, conversing and sometimes battling with other sections of the orchestra
- The romantic music in the fourth movement (often heard as a stand-alone piece), written for Alma and played only by the strings and harp
- The horn and woodwinds which open the fifth movement—some of the most uplifting music Mahler ever composed
INSTRUMENTATION
Two piccolos, four flutes, three oboes, English horn, three clarinets, bass clarinet, E-flat clarinet, three bassoons, contrabassoon, six horns, four trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, harp, strings
