Sometimes known as ‘The Tragic’—a title suggested but then withdrawn by the composer—Mahler’s Symphony No 6 embodies much of the inner turmoil and superstition of its composer. Conceived at perhaps one of the happiest periods of Mahler’s life, it seems to foreshadow the personal tragedies that would later befall him—with his wife Alma writing that 'the music and what it foretold touched us deeply'.

Esa-Pekka Salonen’s work with the Philharmonia for the City of Dreams: Vienna 1900-1935 concert series has produced a number of powerful, live concert recordings for the Philharmonia series, including Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder, Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique and Mahler’s Symphony No 9—all of which have been praised by critics following their release on Signum.