Experiencing Mahler surveys the symphonies and major song sets of Gustav Mahler, presenting them not just as artworks but as vivid and deeply felt journeys. Mahler took the symphony, perhaps the most tradition-bound genre in Western music, and opened it to the widest span of human experience. He introduced themes of love, nature, the chasmic depth of midnight, making peace with death, facing rebirth, seeking one's creator, and being at one with God. Arved Ashby offers the non-specialist a general introduction into Mahler's seemingly unbounded energy to investigate the elements that make each work an experiential adventure-one that has redefined the symphonic genre in new ways.In addition to the standard nine symphonies, Ashby discusses Das Lied von der Erde, the three most commonly heard song sets (the Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Kindertotenlieder, and Rückert-Lieder), and the unfinished Tenth Symphony (in Cooke's edition).Experiencing Mahler is a far-reaching and often provocative search for meaning in the music of one of the most beloved composers of all time.

Chapter 1: The SymphonyChapter 2: Symphony No.1 in D Major (first performed in Budapest, 20 November 1889)Chapter 3: ExcessChapter 4: Symphony No.2 in C Minor, "Resurrection" (first performed in Berlin, 13 December 1895)Chapter 5: Beginning and EndingChapter 6: Symphony No.3 in D Minor (first performed in Krefeld, Germany, 9 June 1902)Chapter 7: Symphony No.4 in G Major (first performed in Munich, 25 November, 1901)Chapter 8: SongChapter 9: Symphony No.5 (first performed in Cologne, 18 October, 1904)Chapter 10: BernsteinChapter 11: Symphony No.6 in A Minor (premiered Essen, 27 May, 1906)Chapter 15: DeathChapter 16: Symphony No.7 (premiered Prague, 19 September, 1908)Chapter 17:Symphony No.8 in E-flat Major (premiered Munich, 12 September, 1910)Chapter 18: Das Lied von der Erde (premiered Munich, 20 November, 1911) and Symphony No.9 in D Major (premiered Vienna, 26 June, 1912)Chapter 19: Symphony No.10 in F-Sharp Major (unfinished)