Thematic Transformations in...Mahler's Ninth Symphony

Mahler's Ninth famously ends with an extended Adagio. Despite the music's sadness and elegiac character, the movement ably fulfills the roll of a genuine finale, summarizing passing ultimate judgment on the work's symphonic journey. Moreover, every scrap of thematic material in the movement transforms previously heard ideas--amazingly so. Musical Examples courtesy of Naxos Records