Abu Dhabi Classics is set to begin its latest season on an existential note.
In the first of two concerts at Emirates Palace, The Netherlands' celebrated Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra will perform Gustav Mahler’s groundbreaking Symphony No 9 on Wednesday.
Having enjoyed its premiere at the Vienna Festival in 1912, merely a year after the Austro-Bohemian composer's death from heart disease, the stirring work has Mahler coming to terms with his impending demise.
As a result, the symphony is viewed as a farewell letter to the world and is hailed as one the greatest of all time.
"Despite the circumstances, there is also a lot of joy to be found in the music," says Ronald Perlwitz, curator of Abu Dhabi Classics. "The symphony also has a strong and deep message about the joy of living and asks us to seize the moment each day."
To understand the enduring stature, Perlwitz breaks down some of the composition's characteristics and themes.
1. The curse of the ninth symphony
Mahler's superstition towards composing a ninth symphony was no laughing matter. With illustrious composers Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert dying after composing their ninth major work, Mahler took no chances.
On completion of his eighth symphony, he wrote Das Lied von der Erde, a piece structurally resembling a symphony that he instead labelled an orchestral song cycle.
Elated at beating "the curse of the ninth", Mahler set to work on the real symphony, only to die before its premiere, leaving the piece incomplete.
While the superstition eventually faded from popular thought, Perlwitz said it was a fear shared by composers at the time.
"This was something that was particularly serious to Mahler," he says. "By composing Das Lied von der Erde, which is really a symphony but in a different name, he told his wife that he thought he defeated the curse. As it turned out, that was not the case for him."
2. It was informed by his impending death
Mahler’s heart problems increased in his latter years.
Symphony No 9 is regarded as his meditation on death and the afterlife — twin issues he also dealt with in his second "Resurrection" symphony first performed in 1895.
However, it is with the ninth, Perlwitz says, that Mahler truly bared his soul.
"It is incredibly moving and full of sentimental longing," he says. "It is like an older man looking back at his youth and what has transpired since then.
"There are a lot of contrasting emotions here, from deep nostalgia to these sections that sound super strong and rough. But the overall feeling here is one that is not dark but nocturnal.
“This is the sound of Mahler coming face to face with his fate and as a result the music is both brave and beautiful.”
3. It is a surreal trip into the past
A highlight, Perlwitz states, is found in the second movement, which Mahler described as "menuetto infinito", meaning a dance that is repeated again and again.
The work takes on a surrealistic quality as he takes listeners on a whirlwind trip of the sounds of his youth.
"We hear the various dances he heard in Austria," Perlwitz says. "The way that he puts them together is incredible because he distorts them and they feel more like fragments.
“What Mahler was doing was taking us inside his mind and we hear the memories of his past.”
4. It is groundbreaking
Until Symphony No 9, long form classical works primarily followed a rigid system.
"Normally they begin with a fast movement, and then it's slow again before picking up the pace again towards the end," Perlwitz explains.
"But with his ninth, Mahler turns it upside down by starting slow, and then super-fast and ending once again in an extremely slow tempo."
This was not a flippant attempt to break with convention, Perlwitz notes. Instead, the new and innovative format served the message Mahler was trying to convey.
“In western culture at that time there was this deeply held belief that there should be unity with the meaning of an artwork and its form,” Perlwitz says.
“Mahler destroys that. There is no unity with this work. What we get instead are glimpses and fragments. By doing so he creates what it must be like to say goodbye from this world.
“Life doesn't end for all of us in a neat way. Instead it can be chaotic and messy at times.”
5. A composition of silence
Symphony No 9, particularly in the fourth and final movement, slows to a crawl.
Perlwitz says it as the summation of Mahler's existential search for the meaning of his own life. "There's a feeling of lightness in the music," he says. "It is that sense of transcendence as Mahler prepares to leave the world. It is simply amazing."
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra will play Mahler's Symphony No 9 on Wednesday at Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi. Showtime is 8pm; tickets starting at Dh75 are available at ticketmaster.ae
Scroll through the gallery below for pictures of the line-up for Abu Dhabi Classics 2022
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Company%20Profile
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More on Quran memorisation:
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Manchester City 4
Otamendi (52) Sterling (59) Stones (67) Brahim Diaz (81)
Real Madrid 1
Oscar (90)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX RESULT
1. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 1:39:46.713
2. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 00:00.908
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-GP 00:12.462
4. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-GP 00:12.885
5. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing 00:13.276
6. Fernando Alonso, McLaren 01:11.223
7. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 1 lap
8. Sergio Perez, Force India 1 lap
9. Esteban Ocon, Force India 1 lap
10. Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren 1 lap
11. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso 1 lap
12. Jolyon Palmer, Renault 1 lap
13. Kevin Magnussen, Haas 1 lap
14. Lance Stroll, Williams 1 lap
15. Pascal Wehrlein, Sauber 2 laps
16. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber 2 laps
17r. Nico Huelkenberg, Renault 3 laps
r. Paul Di Resta, Williams 10 laps
r. Romain Grosjean, Haas 50 laps
r. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing 70 laps
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes.
The car
Hertz offers compact car rental from about $300 (Dh1,100) per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.
The national park
Entry to Mount Rainier National Park costs $30 for one vehicle and passengers for up to seven days. Accommodation can be booked through mtrainierguestservices.com. Prices vary according to season. Rooms at the Holiday Inn Yakima cost from $125 per night, excluding breakfast.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Fatherland
Kele Okereke
(BMG)
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info
UAE v Bolivia, Friday, 6.25pm, Maktoum bin Rashid Stadium, Dubai
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees
Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme
Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks
Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets
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UAE - India ties
The UAE is India’s third-largest trade partner after the US and China
Annual bilateral trade between India and the UAE has crossed US$ 60 billion
The UAE is the fourth-largest exporter of crude oil for India
Indians comprise the largest community with 3.3 million residents in the UAE
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015
His visit on August 23-24 will be the third in four years
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016
Sheikh Mohamed was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2017
Modi will visit Bahrain on August 24-25
RESULTS
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Best Foreign Language Film nominees
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
