Isabelle Faust and Mahler

Isabelle Faust is one of the leading violinists of the present day, and many Icelandic concertgoers still remember vividly her performances of Beethoven and Stravinsky during her tenure as the Iceland Symphony's artist-in-residence in 2010-2011. Since then her star has risen even higher. She appears regularly with the Berlin Philharmonic, is artist-in-residence with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, and won a Gramophone Award in 2017 for her interpretation of Mozart's violin concertos.

Gustav Mahler explored uncharted territory in his vast, majestic symphonies. He finished nine of them, but upon his death in 1911 he left his tenth all but complete. Although Mahler had only arranged the first movement for orchestra, British musicologist Deryck Cooke completed the piece in 1960, evincing Mahler's personal sound with outstanding success. The tenth is a massive masterpiece, packed with drama and emotion, that will leave no one untouched. The Iceland Symphony's honorary conductor, Osmo Vänskä, is one of the world's leading Mahler interpreters. His recordings of Mahler's works have been heaped with praise by the critics, and his most recent one, of Symphony no. 5, was nominated for a Grammy Award.