Mahler's Das klagende Lied

Schubert’s enigmatic Unfinished Symphony opens tonight’s concert with music of profound longing and unanswered questions, setting the scene perfectly for Mahler’s Das klagende Lied, a vast early masterpiece where folklore, tragedy and fate take centre stage.
Mahler's cantata is inspired by two chilling German fairy tales and explores themes of fratricide and ghostly revenge. A jealous man murders his younger brother. When a wandering minstrel makes one of the victim’s bones into a flute, it sings the tale of the crime – with cataclysmic consequences.
Mahler’s score anticipates his later great symphonies in its colourful orchestration and melodic beauty. Highlights include vivid depictions of idyllic woodland and a lively wedding feast, plangent lyrical solos and choral writing full of drama.

Presented by Kate Molleson and recorded at Edinburgh's Usher Hall on 27 August 2026.

Schubert: Symphony No. 8 in B minor, ‘Unfinished’
Mahler: Das klagende Lied (original version, 1880)

Kathleen O'Mara, soprano
Catriona Morison, mezzo-soprano
John Findon, tenor
Nicholas Brownlee, baritone
Edinburgh Festival Chorus
James Grossmith, chorus director
Members of the National Youth Choir of Scotland
Christopher Bell, chorus director
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Sir Donald Runnicles, conductor

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