La Monnaie Symphony Orchestra & Belgian National Orchestra

“All my previous symphonies were just one big prelude to this symphony,” Mahler once claimed, ​“it is my greatest achievement. Try to imagine the whole universe beginning to ring and resound. There are no longer human voices, but planets and suns revolving.“
The Eighth Symphony was the last work of which Mahler himself conducted the premiere. This posed quite a challenge, as the score calls for a gigantic orchestra including organ, celesta, and harmonium, as well as eight vocal soloists, two large mixed choirs, and a boys’ choir. The first movement of the symphony is a rendition of the Latin Pentecost hymn Veni creator Spiritus. The second, much longer movement is a musical portrayal of the final scene of Goethe’s Faust.