Mahler Symphony No. 5

Symphony No. 5 in C# minor

Composer: Gustav Mahler

Date of publication: 1905

Early in February, 1901, Mahler suffered from a severe hemorrhage that supposedly would have killed him if it lasted for another hour. As a result, Mahler moved to his lakeside villa in Carinthia, Austria in June 1901, where he would spend much of his time recovering. However, his life was still centered around music, as he wrote his 5th, 6th, and 7th symphonies here and became the principle conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic and the director of the Vienna Court Opera. Here in Austria Mahler would also meet Alma Maria Schindler, the daughter of a famous Austrian landscape painter, in November, 1901. The two fell in love and married just 4 months later in March, 1902, when Mahler was 41 and Schindler was 22. It is believed that Mahler proposed to Schindler with the 4th movement of his 5th symphony, the Adagietto. With it, Mahler left a poem to Schindler that said, "Wie ich Dich liebe, Du meine Sonne, ich kann mit Worten Dir's nicht sagen. Nur meine Sehnsucht kann ich Dir klagen und meine Liebe, meine Wonne!" Translation: "In which way I love you, my sunbeam, I cannot tell you with words. Only my longing, my love and my bliss can I with anguish declare." For this, along with the fact that Mahler worked on his 5th during the summers of 1901 and 1902, it is believed that Alma Schindler is the inspiration for Mahler's themes in his 5th.

Mahler's 5th symphony is solely instrumental, contrasting his vocal symphonies 2-4. For the most part, his 5th symphony works with the ideas and struggle between tragedy and triumph, with Part I strongly embodying tragic themes and somber allusions to his 4th symphony. Then in Part II, Mahler introduces one of the longest scherzos in existence at 16 minutes long. Inspired by themes from the Austrian Laendler, an Austrian folk dance, and the Viennese waltz, the scherzo's playful and flirtatious themes juxtapose Part I's somber progression and represent the idea of Triumph starting to overtake tragedy. Finally, Part III reaffirms the triumphant theme of the Symphony, with the 4th movement's tenderness transitioning into the 5th movement's rondo in D major. Mahler's 5th received its first premier on October 18th, 1904 where it was played by the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne.

Fun Fact: Mahler spent copious amounts of time making sure that he placed in enough markings in his music, probably because he, as a conductor, empathized with the pain other conductors and orchestras felt trying to interpret music with no markings.

Movements:

Part I

I. Trauermarsch (Funeral march). In gemessenem Schritt. Streng. Wie ein Kondukt (At a measured pace. Strict. Like a funeral procession.) C# minor

II. Stürmisch bewegt, mit größter Vehemenz (Moving stormily, with the greatest vehemence) A minor

Part II

III. Scherzo. Kräftig, nicht zu schnell (Strong and not too fast) D major

Part III

IV. Adagietto. Sehr langsam (Very slow) F major

V. Rondo-Finale. Allegro – Allegro giocoso. Frisch (Fresh) D major