Yaroslav Shemet conducts Mahler's Symphony No. 8
The "Symphony of a Thousand" with the Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra
Cast
Ricarda Merbeth — Soprano
Ilona Krzywicka — Soprano
Marta Huptas — Soprano
Anna Lubanska — Alto
Maria Berezovska — Alto
Rafał Bartmiński — Tenor
Paweł Konik — Baritone
David Leigh — Bass
Program notes
“On the threshold of my old workshop, the Spiritus Creator took hold of me and shook me and drove me on for the next eight weeks until my greatest work was done”—thus spoke Mahler of the inspiration behind his renowned Symphony No. 8, subtitled “Symphony of a Thousand” for its colossal proportions. To mark the 80th anniversary of the first concert of the Silesian Philharmonic Orchestra, you are invited to experience the composition in Katowice’s Spodek!
The performance stars over 1000 artists, including the Silesian Philharmonic and Chamber Orchestra under the skilful baton of Yaroslav Shemet, eight talented soloists, and combined choirs from the Silesian Voivodeship. The first part of Mahler’s eighth symphony is set to the medieval Latin text “Veni creator spiritus”, while the second is a dramatic cantata based on the ending of Goethe’s Faust, forming a life-affirming expression of the holy spirit and mankind’s redemption through love.
