| Dienstag 02 Dezember 2025 | 19:30 |
| Strauss, Richard (1864-1949) | Four Last Songs (chamber version by James Ledger) | |
| Mahler, Gustav (1860-1911) | Symphonie Nr. 9 in D-Dur (chamber version by Klaus Simon) |
| English Symphony Orchestra | |
| Kenneth Woods | Musikalische Leitung |
| April Fredrick | Sopran |
Composed in the difficult years just after WW2, Strauss’s final masterpiece could well have
been a despairing, angry work. Instead, the Four Last Songs stand as one of music’s most
inspiring expressions of gratitude – for long life, for long love and for a world abundant in music and nature.
The Ninth Symphony of Strauss’s friend & contemporary, Gustav Mahler – his last completed work – sees the composer working through deep despair and resignation (shaken to the core by the sudden death of his daughter in 1907) towards a resolution which abounds in gratitude and love.
Full details of the ESO’s Cheltenham Residency can be found on Bachtrack or via the website provided.