59″ x 21.5″
Oil on Canvas
Private Collection – Hamilton, ON
As for the opening movement, Mengelberg claims to have heard Mahler expounding on the subject at the time of the rehearsals in Amsterdam: it expressed ‘violent, self-opinionated, brutal and tyrannical force’, ‘a tragic night without stars or moonlight’ and ruled by ‘the power of darkness’.
Henry-Louis de La Grange
According to Mengelberg, the tenor horn in the introduction proclaims: ‘I’m master here! I’ll impose my will!’
World première: September 19, 1908, Prague. Czech Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the composer.
American première: April 15, 1921, Chicago, conducted by Frederick Stock.