About the thematic relation between the Urlicht and the Andante moderato in Mahler's Symphony nr.2.       07-12-2010

                                                                             

The thematic relation of the first and the third movement with the the final fifth movement in Mahlers Second Symphony is often described. In the first and third movements Mahler lets us foresee the dramatic events in the finale by means of  'anticipations'.  Stimulated by this formal symmetry 1-3-5 I wondered if Mahler also linked together the movements two and four.

When I tried to find a thematic relation between the second movement (Andante moderato) and the fourth movement (Urlicht) I immediately became conscious of what earlier must have been an unconscious perception: the lovely Ländler-melody of the Andante moderato is a rhythmic major-variation of the Wunderhorn-song in minor:    

                                                

           

                                              

Mahler originally composed Urlicht  for voice and piano without the intention to incorporate it in the symphony. We know that he finished the score of Urlicht 19-7-1893 and the score of the Andante moderato 30-7-1893 (CFl). Did Mahler realize when he composed the Andante after finishing Urlicht that he used the same theme? When the dramatic step from the youthful happiness in the second movement to mans darkest hours in the fourth by this simple major-minor change of the same melody is a calculated effect it should be called a stroke of genius. But I can not preclude the possibility that Mahler was fully unaware of this thematic relationship. He spoke about the unconscious in his composing as an important factor (BL2).

 

© Daan Admiraal, 2004

CFl:     Constantin Floros, Die Symphonien, Breitkopf & Härtel-Wiesbaden, 1985

BL2:    Natalie Bauer-Lechner, Erinnerungen an Gustav Mahler, hrsg. von J.Killian, Leipzig-Wien-Zürich 1923.