MAHLER Symphony No. 2 Recording Out Now From Orchestre National de France

Orchestre National de France and conductor Cristian Măcelaru have released a recording of MAHLER Symphony No. 2 on the naïve label. The recording is available for streaming and download, with accompanying photos, booklet, and cover art also offered to the public.

On September 11, 2026, Naïve Classiques will release a new recording of Mahler's Symphony No. 2, 'Resurrection,' from the Orchestre National de France (ONF) and its Music Director, Cristian Măcelaru. The work was recorded live over two evenings in October 2024 at the Maison de la Radio et de la Musique in Paris, and features the Choeur de Radio France under chorus director Lionel Sow, with soprano Hanna-Elisabeth Müller and mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill. Măcelaru leads the work nearly 70 years after Leonard Bernstein's legendary triumph with the ONF in Paris in 1958.

Gustav Mahler first conceived the large-scale symphonic piece he called 'Todtenfeier' (Funeral Rites) in 1888, while he was still in the process of writing his first symphony, the 'Titan.' Slightly revised, this became the introductory Allegro maestoso of the Second Symphony, to which Mahler later added four more movements. The second takes the form of a Ländler folk dance, deceptively gracious, with interwoven motifs. The third is a scherzo based on his song 'Des Antonius von Padua Fischpredigt' (No. 6 from Des Knaben Wunderhorn). For the fourth movement, the composer draws on another song from Des Knaben Wunderhorn, No. 12, 'Urlicht,' preserving the vocal line while altering some of the orchestration and harmonic progressions.

Gustav Mahler searched a long time for inspiration for the Finale, eventually finding it in a hymn sung during the funeral of the great conductor Hans von Bülow. The hymn was based on words by the poet Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, and Mahler resolved then and there to conclude his work with this hymn to resurrection, supplementing Klopstock's text with several verses of his own.

In Mahler's words, 'I was struck as by a lightning bolt with sudden dazzling radiance and clarity within my soul. It has always been like this: I only live when I experience the sensation I create, and only when I create sounds do I experience sensation.'

Tracklist

Symphony No. 2, 'Resurrection' — Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)

CD 1

I. Allegro maestoso (Orchestra)

CD 2

II. Andante moderato (Orchestra)

III. In ruhig fliessender Bewegung (Orchestra)

IV. 'Urlicht' (Mezzo-soprano, Orchestra)

V. (Soprano, Mezzo-soprano, Chorus, Orchestra)

Recording Details

[Live] Recording: Auditorium, Maison de la Radio et de la Musique, Paris (France), 24-25 October 2024

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller, soprano

Karen Cargill, mezzo-soprano

Choeur de Radio France · Lionel Sow

Orchestre National de France · Cristian Măcelaru

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