Welcome

Licht in Der Nacht

Wednesday 13th August at 6.00pm:  ‘Licht in Der Nacht’ at the 1901
Arts Club, 7 Exton Street, Waterloo, London SE1 8UE.

Join us for the acclaimed mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor and distinguished
pianist Hamish Brown’s evening recital. The night is caressed with a
heady mix of lieder and mélodies expressing feelings of love, loss,
longing, angst and introspection in this exploration of fin de siècle
Austrian and French late romanticism, symbolism, mysticism and
impressionism (programme attached).

This is a rare night of musical excellence as both Beth and Hamish are
heavily in demand.

Members — Use the attached link provided by the 1901 Arts Club and
enter the discount code, sent to you by email on 11th July 2025, to
buy tickets at the reduced price of £32.00 plus handling charge of
£2.21 - £34.21.

Non-Members — From 22nd July 2025, the link will be available to purchase
tickets at the regular price of £34.00 plus handling charge of £2.21- £36.21.
Please book early to avoid disappointment.

Mahler at the BBC Proms 2025

There are some enticing prospects for lovers of Mahler’s music at this year’s BBC Proms, starting on Friday 18 July: four symphonies and the rarely-performed early cantata Das Klagende Lied. At the time of writing there are a few tickets left for each concert, but they are very likely to sell out.

Details:

Monday 21 July: Mahler’s Seventh Symphony, played by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra under their Chief Conductor John Storgårds. Also on the programme is a work by the orchestra’s Composer-in-Association Tom Coult, Monologues for the Curious, based on the ghost stories of M. R. James, and featuring tenor Allan Clayton.

Saturday 2 August: Mahler’s Second Symphony, the ‘Resurrection’. The Hallé’s recently- appointed Principal Conductor, Singaporean Kahchun Wong, is at the helm of the orchestra with soprano Mari Eriksmoen, mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, the Hallé Choir and Hallé Youth Choir. The Royal Albert Hall is the perfect venue for this mighty work, as those who attended Sir Simon Rattle’s Proms performance three years ago will attest!

NB. Mahler aficionados can complete an unusual double here: the previous evening’s concert culminates in a rare performance of Luciano Berio’s Sixties classic Sinfonia, which includes a performance of the third movement of Mahler 2, along with quotations from composers from Bach to Stravinsky and beyond: a tribute to Mahler and a potted history of Western classical music!

Monday 4 August: hard on the heels of the Resurrection comes the spine-tingling cantata Das Klagende Lied (The Song of Lament), written when Mahler was twenty and already featuring all the fingerprints we know from the symphonies. Hannu Lintu conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, with the Constanza Chorus and soloists Natalya Romaniw (soprano), Jennifer Johnston (mezzo-soprano), Russell Thomas (tenor) and James Newby (baritone). The concert begins with a performance of Pierre Boulez’s Rituel in memoriam Bruno Maderna.

Monday 11 August: Mahler’s Third Symphony. Such are the demands of this enormous work that two orchestras are combining to perform it: the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Orchestre National de Bretagne. Rising star Beth Taylor is the mezzo-soprano soloist. Also taking part are the CBSO Children’s Chorus, the upper voices of the BBC National Chorus of Wales and the Welsh National Opera Chorus. Ryan Bancroft conducts.

STOP PRESS: On Wednesday 13 August, just two days after her performance in Mahler 3, Beth Taylor is giving a song recital, promoted by GMSUK, at the 1901 Arts Club near Waterloo.

Saturday 23 August: Mahler’s Fifth Symphony. The orchestra with the finest Mahlerian pedigree, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, pays a visit with its Chief Conductor-Designate, Klaus Mäkelä – not yet 30, and arguably the hottest property in classical music (he is also conductor-Designate of the Chicago Symphony). They also perform Berio’s Rendering, a response to the sketches made by Schubert for a symphony in D.

Past Events

News of the Delphine Trio

As you know, the GMS UK’s recent Mahler concert to support young musicians building their careers took place on 25 April 2024, ‘Mahler’s Vienna’ with Betty Makharinsky soprano and Pavel Timofeyevsky piano. See this website’s Concerts and Events page for details.

Our concert in the same series last year was The Delphine Trio and Friends, the Trio being Jobine Siekman cello, Magdalenna Krstevska clarinet and Roelof Temmingh piano, while the friends were Maja Horvat violin and Zwakele Tshbalala tenor.

Since that 2023 concert the Delphine Trio has been busy, recording their début album ‘Adrift’ - TRPTK 2024 (32bit DXD, DSD256). The album has received this glowing review:
“... It is such a pleasure hearing an entire recital of twentieth century compositions that, while often less well known, are dramatically good works. The works are varied, frequently dramatic, and contain unexpected twists and turns that consistently piqued my interest for more. I applaud their programming choices! The less frequently heard combination of clarinet, cello and piano makes for a welcome bit of aural recreation. 

Importantly, the performance qualities of the Delphine Trio are very high — they are excellent musicians who perform with both a high degree of technical proficiency and a clearly evident pleasure in creating music. There is a joyful elan to their performances that is to be cherished. This is music-making of the highest caliber. I look forward to more recordings from this excellent trio…”

For the full review, see the following link:
New Joys from NativeDSD - Positive Feedback (positive-feedback.com)

The Trio isn’t resting on its laurels though. They are currently engaged in a tour:
13 June Bristol, Trio programme featuring Glinka, Fauré, Howard, Brahms
14 July Buxton Festival, Messiaen Quartet for the End of Time

In the nicest possible sense, Break a Leg Delphine Trio!

The Year 2024 got off to a cracking start, when GMS UK President Anthony Raumann met Marina Mahler Fistoulari, granddaughter of Gustav Mahler, in London.

Anthony gave Marina a copy of the CD recording of Das Lied von der Erde in Mahler's Autograph original piano version, with soloists Claudia Huckle contralto, Nicky Spence tenor and Justin Brown piano.

GMS UK was one of the sponsors of this 2023 recording, on the Champs Hill label CHRCD167. The reviewer in BBC Music Magazine wrote, “Here, perfect technique, deep expression and unique vocal personalities combine in the singing of Scottish tenor Nicky Spence and Anglo-German contralto Claudia Huckle…”

Mahler Society members hope to meet Marina Mahler on future occasions when her schedule allows her to visit London. In the meantime, our message to Marina is Happy Listening. We hope you are enjoying this recording as much as we are.

The Society brings together the ever growing number of people who share a love for Mahler’s music. By becoming a member you will enjoy many benefits. Throughout the year there are opportunities to hear noted scholars of Mahler’s life and work, but we also hold events such as the Annual Dinner whose focus is primarily a social one.

Regular newsletters will bring you up to date about concerts in London and other parts of the country, as well as any discounts which may be available to members.