MAHLER: SYM NO.7

Paavo Jarvi and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich continue their recording of Mahlers complete symphonies with the Seventh, considered one of his most complex and challenging symphonies: The Mahler we encounter in Symphony No. 7 is more complex, darker, and more philosophical than the Mahler we know from his earlier works, says Paavo Jarvi. Mahler, who was extremely busy in his role as director of the Vienna Opera, composed this symphony on the shores of Lake Worthersee in Austria during the summers of 1904 and 1905. Also known as Song of the Night, this symphony is characterized by rich instrumentation (including a guitar and mandolin in the fourth movement) and spectacular orchestral effects: Here, nature roars, Mahler said of the tenor horn solo at the beginning of the work.