Donald Runnicles Conducts Mahler’s 5th Symphony: the CSO on tonight’s “Evening Concert”

Tonight at 7:00 on the Evening Concert on WILL-FM 90.9 it’s the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Donald Runnicles guest conducts. Concertmaster Robert Chen is the soloist in Mendelssohn’s “Violin Concerto in E Minor”. Also on the program Mahler’s “5th Symphony”.

Tuesday May 17: Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO 16-20)  

Donald Runnicles Conducts Mahler

Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor; Robert Chen, violin; Donald Runnicles, conductor

Mahler Symphony No. 5; Donald Runnicles, conductor

[CSO fill: Beethoven Coriolan Overture; Fritz Reiner, conductor]

The 5th SYmphony is often marked as being in the "key of C-sharp minor", to which Mahler objected:  "From the order of the movements (where the usual first movement now comes second) it is difficult to speak of a key for the 'whole Symphony', and to avoid misunderstandings the key should best be omitted." [Letter to Peters Music Publishers dated July 23, 1904. Cited after: http://www.gustav-mahler.org/gesamtausgabe/berichte/cr5-f.cfm]