Symphony No. 8 (Mahler)
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The Symphony No. 8 in E flat major by Gustav Mahler, known as the Symphony of a Thousand, was mostly written in 1906, with its vast orchestration and final touches completed in 1907. The symphony takes around eighty minutes to perform.
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[edit] Orchestration
The symphony requires a massive number of musicians to perform, hence the nickname "Symphony of a Thousand."
- Woodwinds
- 4 Flutes
- 2 Piccolo parts, several to a part
- 4 Oboes
- English Horn
- E-flat Clarinet, doubled throughout
- 3 Clarinets in B-flat, A
- Bass Clarinet in B-flat, A
- 4 Bassoons
- Contrabassoon
- Percussion
- Timpani
- Triangle
- 3 Cymbals
- Bass drum
- Tam-tam
- Deep Bells in A, A-flat
- Glockenspiel
- Offstage
- 4 Trumpets in F, several to a part
- 3 Trombones
- Voices
- First Soprano (Magna Peccatrix)
- Second Soprano (Una poenitentium)
- Third Soprano (Mater gloriosa)
- First Alto (Mulier Samaritana)
- Second Alto (Maria Aegyptiaca)
- Tenor (Doctor Marianus)
- Baritone (Pater ecstaticus)
- Bass (Pater profundus)
- Boys' choir
- Mixed choirs I, II
- 1st, 2nd Violins
- Violas
- Violoncellos
- Double basses.
Note by Mahler: When large choirs of voices and strings are used, doubling of the first chair of woodwinds is recommended.
[edit] Structure
The work is divided into two large parts. The first, Part I, Hymnus: Veni, Creator Spiritus is a setting of a medieval Latin hymn by Hrabanus Maurus and typically lasts about 25 minutes; one of the soprano soloists does not appear in this section. The movement is almost continuously vocal, with the hymn being sung mainly by the choirs. Despite its apparent complexity, in it can be seen a type of sonata form.
The second part, Part II, Schluss-szene aus "Faust" lasts around 55 minutes, which is longer than most complete symphonies. It takes as its text the final scene of Goethe's Faust. It is often said to be more like a cantata than a symphony, because of its extensive use of vocal soloists. The music is continuous, but it can be regarded as consisting of three sections corresponding to the last three movements of the classical symphony: first, a slow adagio section lasting for fifteen minutes with almost no singing; then a scherzo-like section; and finally a quick and lively finale.
[edit] Brief description of the opening of the symphony
Instead of starting with an orchestra to launch the symphony, Mahler uses the organist playing a powerful E flat major chord. (The organist has to look carefully at the conductor in a mirror for a signal to begin.) The organ cuts off, but maintains a low E-flat while the full chorus joins in with a call of "Veni!" After the first phrase, the orchestra joins, first with timpani and brass instruments, then the rest of the orchestra simultaneously with the chorus repeating the call of "Veni".
[edit] Composition
The symphony continually uses a simple theme, sometimes just the first three notes. (E-flat, B-flat, and A-flat.) A number of themes from the first part are repeated, though often in modified form. For example, a theme first sung by the baritone in Part II concludes the immense symphony. Main melodies are continually used and sometimes altered until the they are so well hidden with other small themes throughout the symphony. The theme appears in various other places. The mood changes within each of the three "sections" of Part II, and the boundaries between them are somewhat blurred. Mahler described the tremendous finale of this symphony: "Try to imagine the whole universe beginning to ring and resound." Indeed, it does, and Mahler seems to have written his most powerful, overwhelming, awe-inspiring finale of all his symphonies.
[edit] Premiere and history
Today, despite the enormous forces and cost required to stage the symphony, performances and recordings are not rare. However, the number of musicians involved in modern performances rarely reaches 1,000. In 2001, however, there was a performance celebrating an anniversary year in Basel, with over 700 singers from 16 local choirs and 200 members of the Basel Symphony Orchestra. Including around 150 aides, over 1,000 performers were involved. The premiere performance in Munich on 12 September 1910 featured a chorus of about 850, with an orchestra of 171. These massive forces led to Mahler's agent dubbing the work Symphony of a Thousand. Mahler did not approve of the title at all, but it remains.
This work was the first to which the publishers Universal Edition obtained an original copyright. They first published a vocal score in 1910, with a full score following in 1911.
The piece was a great success at its premiere, one of few of Mahler's works to be so well received in his lifetime. It was the last premiere of one his works that Mahler witnessed before his death. He completed two further works, the orchestral song cycle Das Lied von der Erde, and his Symphony No. 9.
[edit] Premieres
- World premiere: September 12, 1910, Munich, conducted by the composer.
- American premiere: March 2, 1916, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, conducted by Leopold Stokowski.
- English premiere: April 15, 1930, London, with Henry Wood conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
- Japanese premiere: December 8, 1949, Tokyo, with Kazuo Yamada conducting the Japan Symphony Orchestra (now NHK Symphony Orchestra)
- Taiwanese premiere: October 10, 1995, Taipei, with Uri Mayer conducting the National Symphony Orchestra (Taiwan) (former known as National Concert Hall Symphony Orchestra)
- Chinese premiere: October 11, 2002, Beijing, with Long Yu conducting the China Philharmonic Orchestra
- Southeast Asian premiere: May 29, 2004, Singapore, with Lan Shui conducting the Singapore Symphony Orchestra
[edit] Trivia
- The fastest recording of the symphony is conducted by Neeme Järvi, clocking in at 70:16, while the slowest, with Wyn Morris, takes 92:45.
- This symphony marks the return to the usage of voices since the fourth symphony, the usage of a chorus since the third symphony, and a chorus with male voices since the second symphony.
- On August 26, 2006, about 90,000 people witnessed a free performance billed as the "first-ever outdoor presentation". It was given on a specially constructed stage on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, conducted by Isaac Karabtchevsky leading 412 choral singers, 8 soloists and 171 instrumentalists. It included amplification, lighting, and video screens to accompany the symphony, marking a cultural achievement. (By coincidence, Esa-Pekka Salonen conducted the same symphony on the same evening (of the "first-ever outdoor presentation") at Berwaldhallen (Berwald Hall) in Stockholm, as the concluding event at the Baltic Sea Festival.)
[edit] Sound sample
- Opening of the first movement, played by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna State Opera Chorus and the Vienna Singverein conducted by Georg Solti (ogg format, 18 seconds, 86KB)
[edit] External links
| Symphonies by Gustav Mahler |
|---|
| By Number: 1 | †2 | †3 | †4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | †8 | 9 | ¶10| By name: †Das Lied von der Erde |
| † denotes piece with chorus and/or vocal soloists• ¶ denotes unfinished piece |
