BPO Performs Strauss and Mahler: A Picturesque Retrospective of Life and Death

The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra — under the baton of its founder and conductor Benjamin Zander — presented a compelling concert at Symphony Hall on Feb. 15. The program featured Richard Strauss’ “Ver Letztes Lieder” (“Four Last Songs”) and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 in G major, with English soprano Claire Booth as the soloist. While Strauss’ lush orchestration occasionally overshadowed Booth’s lyrical voice, her performance shone more brightly in Mahler’s symphony, creating a memorable musical experience.

The concert opened with Strauss’ “Four Last Songs,” composed in 1948 — just one year before his death. Premiered in 1950, these songs stand as a poignant emotional confession, distinct from Strauss’ earlier work. The orchestra’s performance, rich in tonal depth, evoked a profound sense of nostalgia and retrospective reconciliation, capturing the essence of twilight and farewell.

Claire Booth, dressed in a dark blue-grey color that mirrored the themes of night and death in the poems, delivered a performance that was both graceful and technically adept. The first two songs, “Frühling” (“Spring”) and “September,” were performed at their original pace, with long and drawn-out measures that demanded sustained breath control and precise handling of sudden leaps into the upper register. While the dense, interwoven orchestral textures occasionally overpowered Booth’s voice, she tried to navigate the challenge with sublime intonation, articulating all the consonants clearly. In “Beim Schlafengehen” (“At Bedtime”), her voice blended more seamlessly with the orchestra, creating an ethereal experience that enveloped the audience in a starry, dream-like soundscape.

The final song “Im Abendrot” held particular significance as the inspiration for the entire cycle. Strauss was deeply inspired by Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff’s poem, which reflects on life’s journey and the approach to death. The powerful orchestra and longer instrumental passage set an introspective mood before the soprano’s entrance. Unlike Strauss’ earlier works, which often obscured personal reflection behind myth and irony, this song offers a clear, heartfelt tribute to his wife. Listening to this lied, one could vividly imagine a Romantic landscape painting, like the artwork of David Casper Freidrich: Two wanderers enveloped by a darkening “Abendrot” (“Sunset”), with two larks — represented by beautiful flutes — soaring dreamily into the sky. The wanderers, weary from their “Einsamkeit” (“Solitude”) and journey of “Not und Freude” (“Pain and Joy”), pause to contemplate the quiet approach of death. Booth’s performance, particularly in the ascending notes in the final line “Ist dies etwa der Tod?” (“Could this, perhaps, be death?”), was deeply moving; her gaze fixed on the distance as if mirroring the wanderers’ serene acceptance of the inevitable.

Zander’s conducting was steady and heartfelt. Almost 86 years old, Zander brought a lifetime of experience and introspection to his interpretation of the pieces, which he noted in the pre-concert talk. His connection to Mahler’s music was clear, and his ability to convey the music’s sincerity was evident throughout the concert.

In contrast to the languid, reflexive mood of Strauss, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 brought a lighter, waltz-like, and more joyous tone to the program with the recurring cheerful sleigh bells. Zander, who has a 50-year-long relationship with Mahler’s music, seemed to come alive in this symphony; his conducting became more animated and dramatic.

The orchestra blended folk and chamber music elements, creating an accessible yet richly textured work that allowed each instrument to shine. Short solos passed between clarinets, oboes, flutes, strings, bassons, and horns created a lively dialogue. The first movement built to a moment of climax, punctuated by the clashing of voices by the drums and trumpets, before transitioning into a darker, more grotesque tone reminiscent of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. The music then shifted to a more melodious phase with staccato passages and a recurring sleigh bell motif, signaling new development. The dynamic shifts and intricate instrumental conversation made the movement engaging.

In the final movement “Das himmlische Leben” (“Life in Heaven”), which is a humoresque based on a collection of German folk poetry, Booth returned to the stage. Zander explained in his pre-concert speech that the soloist must embody the childlike character of the text, and Booth did this successfully throughout the movement. Her voice was heard more clearly through Mahler’s piece, soaring with dramatic vibrato and childlike naiveté and wonder. Her high notes floated lushly into the concert hall as she sang “Sact Peter im Himmel sieht zu!” (“Saint Peter in Heaven looks on”) with a child-like gaze to the distance. The music concluded softly with harp fading into silence, leaving the audience in a state of quiet reflection.

Despite its lighter tone, Mahler’s Fourth subtly explores the theme of death and the innocence of childhood, creating a bittersweet contrast to the seemingly utopian picture of heaven in the poem. Together with Strauss’s Four Last Songs, the program offered a profound meditation on passage of time, memory, and mortality.

Overall, the BPO, under Zander’s masterful direction and Booth’s evocative performance, delivered a concert that was emotionally resonant and musically exquisite. The pairing of Strauss and Mahler provided a poignant exploration of life’s fleeting beauty with a sense of introspection and wonder.

—Staff writer Dailan Xu can be reached at dailan.xu@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @Dailansusie.