Gustav Mahler
Symphony n. 7 (1904-1906)
Nachtmusik I: Allegro moderato 00:00
Nachtmusik II: Andante amoroso 14:27
Die Wiener Symphoniker
Hermann Scherchen, conductor
Painting: Caravaggio [?], Mary Magdalen in Ecstasy, between 1606 and 1610
The Seventh Symphony by Gustav Mahler was premiered in 1908 in Prague.
In his introduction to the Seventh R. Specht wrote: “It is known that Mahler was not fond of giving titles to his symphonies and their respective movements, in order to avoid any appearance of there being some kind of programme behind them,but as a suggestion of the atmosphere he intended to mediate, the title ‘Nightly Walk’, suggested by admirers of the composer at the premiere in Prague, cannot be dismissed.”
[…] The second movement, Nachtmusik I, deepens the impression of a nightly walk through the reminiscence of a march.
[…] The fourth movement, Nachtmusik II, bears the inscription ‘Andante amoroso’. Guitar, mandoline, harp and the orchestra’s reduction to chamber music size lead to yet another aspect of night: the awakening love finds its expression in the serenade.
Stefan Lipka
