On Monday the 21st of April we begin rehearsals on Mahler’s last completed symphonic work, the Ninth Symphony.  As we rehearse each movement (one each rehearsal) I’ll post thoughts on this large and emotionally exhausting work as a preparation for the performances to come.

Mahler’s Ninth Symphony has been described as a farewell of an artist who was very much grappling with his mortality.  As with many things, sometimes the language of the composer works best in describing what they’re getting at.  In Mahler’s case, that would be German, and the term of art might be die Verabscheidung, meaning farewell, or leave-taking.   [Read more →]

In the sporting world, if you’ve got depth on your team, then you’ve got a “great bench”. Supporting players that can come in at a moment’s notice and make a crucial difference when one of your first string players is unable to play. [Read more →]