Mahler: Symphony No. 7 – Paavo Järvi

Paavo Järvi and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich continue their complete cycle of Mahler 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 previous works,” says Paavo Järvi. Mahler, who was extremely busy in his role as director of the Vienna Opera, composed this symphony on the shores of Lake Wörthersee 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.