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From the Â鶹ԼÅÄ Proms: Sir Simon Rattle conducts the London Symphony Orchestra with soprano Louise Alder and mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly in Mahler’s ‘Resurrection’ Symphony.

Presented by Andrew McGregor, from the Royal Albert Hall, London.

Harrison Birtwistle: Donum Simoni MMXVIII
Mahler: Symphony No. 2 in C minor, ‘Resurrection’

Louise Alder (soprano)
Dame Sarah Connolly (mezzo-soprano)
CBSO Chorus
London Symphony Chorus
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Simon Rattle (conductor)

The end has come, and in the silence after the Last Trumpet, a solitary bird is the only sound heard on Earth. The ambition of Gustav Mahler’s ‘Resurrection’ Symphony staggers the imagination – an emotional odyssey on a cosmic scale that embraces tenderness, rage, dark humour and – yes – the end of the world itself. Sir Simon Rattle was still a teenager when he conducted his first performance of Mahler’s Second Symphony, and it’s been a personal touchstone at every stage of his career. Now, as he prepares to step down as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra, he pairs it with a short (but very personal) tribute from the late Harrison Birtwistle, one of Britain’s most distinguished recent composers.