Embrace Everything - The World of Gustav Mahler Aaron Cohen

Gustav Mahler originally titled his First Symphony “Titan,” because of the mighty struggle between his hero and fate, a monumental battle that reaches its climax in the fourth movement. 

Guests include Michael Tilson Thomas (San Francisco Symphony, New World Symphony), William Hudgins (Principal Clarinet, Boston Symphony Orchestra), Jennifer Montone (Principal Horn, Philadelphia Orchestra), Marilyn McCoy (Columbia University), and Christine Lee Gengaro (Los Angeles City College). James Lurie is the voice of Mahler and Laura Gragtmans is the voice of Natalie Bauer-Lechner.

Early audiences found the third movement of Gustav Mahler’s First Symphony grotesque, macabre and unsettling. Inspired by an engraving entitled “The Huntsman’s Funeral,” Mahler juxtaposes death with humor, incorporating a popular children's melody—a brilliant touch that still delights and spooks audiences today. 

Guests include William Hudgins (Principal Clarinet, Boston Symphony Orchestra), Dominic Seldis (Principal Bass, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra), Marilyn McCoy (Columbia University), Philip V. Bohlman (University of Chicago), and Christian Glanz (University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna). James Lurie is the voice of Mahler and Laura Gragtmans is the voice of Natalie Bauer-Lechner.

In the second movement of his First Symphony, Gustav Mahler draws upon the dance music of his youth. As his mood becomes more exuberant, so too, does the music.

Guests include Michael Tilson Thomas (San Francisco Symphony, New World Symphony), Kent Nagano (Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Hamburg State Opera and Philharmonic), Marilyn McCoy (Columbia University), Philip V. Bohlman (University of Chicago), and Christian Glanz (University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna). James Lurie is the voice of Mahler and Laura Gragtmans is the voice of Natalie Bauer-Lechner.

Gustav Mahler’s First Symphony is the story of a young man beginning his journey through life. In fact, it is Mahler himself, looking at the world with wide-eyed wonder. Originally, he titled the first movement “Spring Without End,” for its depiction of the joys of nature. 

Guests include Michael Tilson Thomas (San Francisco Symphony, New World Symphony), Kent Nagano (Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Hamburg State Opera and Philharmonic), William Hudgins (Principal Clarinet, Boston Symphony Orchestra), Marilyn McCoy (Columbia University) and Caroline Kita (Washington University in St. Louis). James Lurie is the voice of Mahler and Laura Gragtmans is the voice of Natalie Bauer-Lechner.

Season 1 focuses on Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in D major (1888), taking listeners back to the work’s origins in the street songs, folk tunes and bugle calls of Mahler’s childhood. Each episode is devoted to a movement of the symphony. Guests include conductors Kent Nagano and Michael Tilson Thomas; principal musicians of the Boston Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam; and scholars from Columbia University and the University of Chicago.