Proms 2026 Mahler’s ‘Song of the Earth’

‘How should I describe such a colossal crisis?’ Mahler wrote in 1909. ‘Yet I am thirstier than ever for life …’ Personal and professional loss had taken the composer to the brink, but even as he faced tragedy he experienced the pleasures of living with renewed intensity. It’s this strange, urgent ecstasy that runs through Das Lied von der Erde (‘The Song of the Earth’) – a collision of symphony and song, life and loss. This epic musical farewell meets the witty musical parting of Haydn’s ‘Farewell’ Symphony, with its famous final movement of ever-shrinking forces. Bushra El-Turk’s Mosaic opens the concert with nods to Das Lied, in a meditation on identity, otherness and exoticism.

Jamie Barton © Jonathan Timms