Mahler Chamber Orchestra

Along with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, Berlin-based coloratura soprano Anna Prohaska explores bucolic musical worlds on two continents: the sketches of American life beyond the big cities in the songs of Charles Ives are contrasted with early songs by Gustav Mahler. The evening concludes with Dvořák’s attempts to unite both worlds in the »New World« symphony, where global sound traditions become a new, genuinely American one.
Church and folk songs, patriotic chants, the noise of the crowd: Charles Ives repeatedly attempted to place moments of American (village) life within his elaborate soundscapes – sometimes nostalgically, sometimes ecstatically, and sometimes with joyful exuberance. His passionate desire for experimentation and adventure followed a higher goal not dissimilar to that of Gustav Mahler: creating an all-embracing musical world.