Prom 16 (29.07.20) Mahler 6th Symphony

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Tonight's prom finds two contrasting heroes sharing the limelight in an evening of musical drama from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and its then new Chief Conductor, Andris Nelsons. Brett Dean’s trumpet concerto Dramatis personae, composed for tonight’s soloist, Swedish virtuoso Håkan Hardenberger, assigns all roles to the trumpet, casting him by turns as fallen superhero and accidental revolutionary. Mahler’s Sixth Symphony sees the composer himself as cursed hero – one, he explained, ‘on whom fall three blows of fate, the last of which fells him as a tree is felled’. The conclusion may be a tragic one but there are also scenes of beauty and joy in a work that includes a glowing theme associated with Mahler’s wife, Alma.


Brett Dean: Dramatis personae
Mahler: Symphony No. 6 in A minor

Håkan Hardenberger (trumpet)
Boston Symphony Orchestra
Andris Nelsons (conductor)

(From BBC Proms 2015, 22 August)

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Let's not argue about the order of the movements.

[Petrushka]

I was present at this one but have to say I can't remember a thing about it! All of the repeats I've heard so far have sounded really very good indeed and I wonder if they've been re-mastered in some way.

My favourite Mahler 6 at the Proms was that with the LPO and Klaus Tennstedt in 1983, one which is happily available on the LPO label.

[Pulcinella]

My Dover Miniature Score (2003), claiming to be an unabridged republication of the work originally published by Nachfolger in 1906, rather curiously omits the harps and celesta in the Instrumentation list.
But even more curiously, the wording against the stave for the celesta is:
Celesta (in F womöglich zwei oder mehrfach besetzt).

Celesta in F? What's that all about?

[jonfan]

A great Mahler 6 with tremendous drive from the off, with a rich, passionate string tone. There was very little pause between movements which helped to keep the momentum going. Terrific in all departments but the first trumpet had the sound to ride over everything at the big moments, as it should. I enjoyed the whole performance, beautifully caught in detailed but spacious sound, nicely ruined by someone coming in with applause early before this last notes had died away.