Erika Sunnegårdh (soprano)
Ricarda Merbeth (soprano)
Christiane Oelze (soprano)
Lioba Braun (alto)
Gerhild Romberger (alto)
Stephen Gould (tenor)
Dietrich Henschel (baritone)
Georg Zeppenfeld (bass)
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Riccardo Chailly, conductor


Mahler’s Eighth Symphony is arguably the grandest and most ambitious piece of symphonic music ever written. The composer himself regarded it as his opus summum, and an incredible number of participants at the hugely successful Munich première in 1910 earned it the nickname “Symphony of a Thousand”. At Leipzig’s International Mahler Festival 2011, Riccardo Chailly commanded almost 500 musicians, and the overwhelming result of their joint effort inspired the Leipzig-based and internationally renowned artist Neo Rauch to the painting for the cover of this DVD.