Mahler triumphs at the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona
The 7th symphony premieres in Verona under the inspiring baton of Marcus Bosch

The great music of Gustav Mahler returned to the Teatro Filarmonico thanks to the programming of Fondazione Arena, which has long aimed to present Mahler’s complete symphonic oeuvre to the Verona audience.

Last Friday’s concert featured, for the first time ever at this venue, the performance of Mahler’s Seventh Symphony — “Song of the Night” — conducted by German maestro Marcus Bosch, an internationally renowned musician already known and appreciated here for his direction of another “first” in our theatre: Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde.

Mahler’s music, now fully recognised in its depth and richness, brought to our culture a sense of transformation and a unique sonic complexity that the 19th century feared, and the 20th century would soon abandon in pursuit of new artistic horizons.

In the Seventh Symphony (composed in 1905), one witnesses a radical shift in tone and style. Gone is the voice that traditionally symbolised pain in Mahler’s work, replaced by a sonic outlook turned toward the innovations emerging from the Second Viennese School.

One must listen attentively to the funeral rhythms of the opening Andante, the “liquid sonorities of the first Nachtmusik”, the almost hallucinatory timbral tensions of the Scherzo, the chamber-music intimacy of the second Nachtmusik, and finally, the colossal architecture of the Rondo-Finale — with Wagner’s presence surfacing here and there, dragging with it a now outdated worldview and musical language.

To perform this symphony properly, one must simply let flow the tense, aching sound that Mahler crafted, emphasising each individual element and carefully following the continuous alternation of tempi — slow and agitated.

It may seem simple, but in truth, it is the most difficult task of all: becoming transparent to the music, as if the composer were beside the orchestra, speaking through the conductor to express what he meant or perhaps wished he had said. This approach risks nullifying the conductor’s own personality — making them seem superfluous, incapable of expressing themselves.

Marcus Bosch, Mahler’s spokesman
Marcus Bosch took on this daunting responsibility with intelligence and artistry, carefully calibrating the orchestral dynamics and sustaining a high level of tension from the very first bar.

He accentuated and probed the most tormented passages of the score, drawing the audience into a deeply human inner conflict. The symphony thus unfolded with brisk, relentless pacing — slightly under the traditional seventy-minute mark that many great conductors observe in recordings.

In the end, Bosch triumphed. He truly reimagined the symphony without losing any of Mahler’s essence and never once allowed the orchestra to play without his vivid, radiant presence — expressing his own ideal of total music, of life devoted to it, and of hope in defiance of all evidence.

One need only consider his masterful rendering of the Scherzo — one of the most captivating movements — where a folk dance accelerates wildly, taking on demonic flashes before disintegrating.

The entire Arena Orchestra, under his lead, was fully focused on this extremely demanding piece, reaffirming the skill and dedication that marked their performances throughout the entire symphonic season.

The evening concluded with great success, with numerous curtain calls and enthusiastic applause. Bosch then turned to the audience and highlighted individual orchestra sections, inviting them to share in the recognition he so evidently values.

by Gianni Schicchi

© Photo by Franca Wrage