Work: Symphony No. 2 in C minor, “Resurrection”
Composer: Gustav Mahler
Additional works: Henry Purcell – Remember Not Lord Our Offences, Z 50; Robert Schumann – Nachtlied, Op. 108
Performers: Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks; Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Soloists: Louise Alder (soprano), Beth Taylor (mezzo-soprano)
Conductor: Sir Simon Rattle
Venue: Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg
Date: 21 March 2026
Time: 20:00 (Hamburg) / 19:00 (GMT)
Few works in the orchestral repertoire carry the emotional and symbolic weight of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Known as the “Resurrection Symphony,” it culminates in one of the most overwhelming finales in music, where chorus and orchestra unite in a vision of renewal and transcendence.
For Sir Simon Rattle, the piece holds a personal significance: hearing it as a child proved decisive in shaping his musical path. Now, he returns to this monumental score at the Elbphilharmonie, leading the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Choir in a performance that brings together vast forces and profound philosophical scope.
The programme frames Mahler’s symphony with choral works that echo its spiritual dimension. Henry Purcell’s Remember Not Lord Our Offences offers a penitential reflection rooted in the English sacred tradition, while Robert Schumann’s Nachtlied sets a text by Friedrich Hebbel with a sense of quiet introspection.
In Hamburg, a city closely linked to Mahler’s own creative life, the performance acquires an added resonance: it was here, in St. Michael’s Church, that the composer found inspiration for the symphony’s choral finale. The closing message — “You will rise again” — remains one of the most powerful affirmations in the repertoire, continuing to move audiences more than a century after its creation.
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