Finale from Symphony No. 2 (The Resurrection)

One of the most life-affirming pieces of music ever composed, Mahler’s 2nd Symphony, subtitled ‘The Resurrection’, was first performed in Berlin in 1895. Mahler’s interest in the mysteries of the afterlife is well-known and is a recurring theme throughout all his nine symphonies. Philip Harper has arranged the final passages of the 2nd Symphony, which begins with a profound hymn set to the words of Friedrich Klopstock— ‘Rise again, yea, thou shalt rise again’.

The music contains one of Mahler’s magical transitionary passages, building in intensity, before the hymn is restated in all its majesty at the moment of glorious resurrection. This arrangement was performed as the finale to Cory Band’s winning Brass in Concertprogramme in 2012