MAHLER SYMPHONY NO. 1

"One of my jobs as Principal Bass is to perform solos when called for by the composition, and Mahler's First Symphony has one of the most famous bass solos in the third movement. Until this point, the symphony is over all an optimistic work, but the solo bass and solo timpani create a ghostly, shadowy mood. This big, bold symphony sounds magnificent in Music Hall. I feel very lucky to work in this hall, it is one of my favorites. I’ve performed with the CSO in most of the famous concert halls around the world. Visually and acoustically Music Hall is a sumptuous experience. Very few American orchestras get to perform in a concert hall that was around when Mahler was alive and I find this link to past traditions very special. And don’t forget that in the early 1900s, the CSO performed the American premieres of Mahler’s Third and Fifth Symphonies in Music Hall. In Cincinnati USA we have one of the grand European concert halls!"

—Owen Lee, Principal Bass

These concerts are endowed by Martha Anness, Priscilla Haffner & Sally Skidmore in loving memory of their mother, LaVaughn Scholl Garrison, a long-time patron of the Orchestra. Pre-Concert Talks are made possible by an endowed gift from Melody Sawyer Richardson.