Oramo conducts Mahler

Art imitates life – it isn’t meant to happen the other way round. Mahler’s Sixth Symphony imagines a hero destroyed by three devastating blows of fate. After he’d filled every bar of this immense symphony with his most heartfelt feelings, that’s exactly what happened to Mahler himself. Dark, tempestuous and filled with yearning visions of hope, it’s a musical experience that leaves few listeners unmoved.

The Sixth Symphony is a mighty challenge for any conductor and orchestra, and this should be a landmark in Sakari Oramo’s ongoing journey through the Mahler symphonies with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Bachtrack described their performance of Mahler’s Third Symphony at the 2023 BBC Proms as “an electrifying account”, and in this opening concert of the new BBC SO season the emotional stakes are even higher.