30 Oct 2010
Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony: an introduction by Simon Halsey (13 min.)
Gustav Mahler’s Second, known as the Resurrection Symphony, is one of the greatest challenges of the concert repertoire. In October 2010, the Berliner Philharmoniker and chief conductor Sir Simon Rattle juxtaposed it with Arnold Schoenberg’s moving short piece A Survivor from Warsaw, in which actor Hanns Zischler appeared as the narrator. In addition, the Rundfunkchor Berlin was heard in both compositions, whose chief conductor Simon Halsey explains the special characteristics of the works in this introduction.