There is nothing like Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. It is an apocalyptic work requiring vast forces: a giant orchestra, as well as an organ, chorus, two soloists and multiple offstage musicians. Mahler poses the great questions of life and provides heart-stopping answers. In the finale the earth quakes, graves burst open, the last trumpet sounds, and a heavenly choir reassures all humankind: "Rise again, yes, thou shalt rise again." Of the culminating moments Mahler wrote: "A feeling of overwhelming love fills us with blissful knowledge and illuminates our existence."

Dame Sarah Connolly, acclaimed as one of the greatest Mahler singers in living memory, sings the mezzo-soprano part, which includes the ineffable song "Urlicht." Her 2022 BPO performance of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde sublimely demonstrated the poignancy that she brings to Mahler's music. She and Swedish soprano Miah Persson sing the mezzo and soprano part, respectively, on Maestro Zander's recording of the Mahler Second with the London Philharmonia Orchestra (you can hear it here). The authenticity that both bring to Mahler's music perfectly matches my vision.

-Benjamin Zander