Following the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s performance of Beethoven’s Ninth in the final Ryman Healthcare Gala last year, the 2025 MSO season boldly opened with a resurrection of the choral symphony genre – quite literally, with Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony No. 2.

The monumental nature of the “Resurrection” Symphony was presaged by a full audience in Hamer Hall, witnessing over 230 orchestral and choral performers assemble on the stage to present a profound musical exploration of life, death and redemption. It seemed as if the sheer magnitude of the work, which features five movements that weave through moments of existential despair, nostalgia, and triumphant transcendence, had drawn in an audience as capacious as the music itself.

The work was Mahler’s first choral symphony that took him almost seven years to complete, a result of his metaphysical contemplation– in his own words, questions like “What is life – and what is death? Why did you live? Why did you suffer?”

Jaime Martín conducts the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Opening Night Gala. Photo © Laura Manariti

Chief Conductor Jaime Martín led with broad, yet assured gestures, which ensured a cohesive and compelling performance. At times, the...