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Mahler famously told Sibelius that "a symphony must be like the world. It must embrace everything" and there's certainly a lot of everything in Mahler's Third Symphony. It takes over 90 minutes and massive orchestral forces to perform, as it lurches from resplendent and eloquent depictions of nature to military marches, earthy humour and rustic dances. There's song, too, when time seems suspended, only to be immediately followed by a jolly ding-dong folksong. And it's all capped by an extraordinary and transcendent slow orchestral finale.

The recording was made at the opening concert of the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra's new season in September last year. After four years, the orchestra was finally back in its home, the lavishly renovated Grosse Tonhalle, internationally renowned for its superb acoustics.

Mahler: Symphony No. 3

Wiebke Lehmkuhl (alto)
Zurich Sing-Akademie
Zurich Boys' Choir
Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra
Paavo J盲rvi (conductor)

Image: 漏 Kaupo Kikkas