Mahler: 7th Symphony, 1st movement

Mahler, 7th Symphony, 1st movement

the crowning achievement of my MIDI sequencing (and still in progress).

My book-plus-CD package is available for $50.00 US, plus postage -- contact me.

book: Mahler 7th/1: an analytical reduction score, and speculations on the "hidden program", of the first movement of Gustav Mahler's Seventh Symphony,

CD: an mp3 of my computer realization of the 1st movement of the symphony (26 minutes), retuned by Gene Ward Smith in his bifrost tuning, a 12-tone circulating well-temperament,


I've never been completely happy with any recording or performance I've heard of this work. It's often cited as being Mahler's worst symphony, and I think that opinion is a result of there not being any proper interpretations of it available on recording.

I think my years of Mahler studies, and of the circumstances surrounding the composition of this symphony in particular, give me a perspective on this piece that, in my opinion, makes this interpretation of the first movement the best available (except for the fact that it's still unfinished and in progress).

I began working on the MIDI of this movement in 1988, using Texture sequencer software. In 1992 i switched to Cakewalk, and have continued to refine the tempos and phrasing up to 2003.

samples of 1st and last pages of my "analytical reduction" score

Table of Contents

pages
1 - 2	...	Introductory comments
2 - 4	...	The influence of Strauss
4 - 8	...	The influence of Schoenberg
8 - 9	...	Literary influences
9 - 12	...	Rembrandt's The Night Watch and dream-states
12 - 13	...	A Note on Keys and Tonality
13 - 15	...	Counterpoint and dissonance in Mahler's 7th
15	...	A note about my score of Mahler 7th/1
15 - 16	...	A note about my CD of Mahler 7th/1
16 - 21	...	Analysis and "secret program" of Mahler 7th/1 by measure number
22 - 24	...	References
25	...	Analytical diagram of Mahler 7th/1
27 - 79	...	Score of Monzo Analytical Reduction of Mahler 7th/1

(see my book-length webpage A Century of New Music in Vienna for detailed further background info)

Updated:

2000.08.14
2002.01.05
2003.01.04 -- included link to complete mp3 and eliminated links to MIDI-files
2003.01.27 -- included info about newly-completed book/CD and eliminated link to audio file
2005.10.21 -- changed links to point to new Tonalsoft website