The Architecture of Audio Documentary: Telling the Story of Mahler’s Music

Gustav Mahler famously said, “A symphony must be like the world; it must embrace everything.” True to his word, Mahler embraced a vast range of musical, philosophical, and spiritual ideas in his compositions. In this talk, podcast producer and host Aaron Cohen explores the creative challenge of telling the story of Mahler’s music through audio documentary. Through a series of excerpts from the first four seasons of Embrace Everything—The World of Gustav Mahler, Cohen takes listeners behind the scenes to examine the choices that shape each sequence: when to let the music speak for itself, when to introduce narration, how interviews with musicians and scholars can illuminate what we hear, and how dramatic readings of historical texts can bring Mahler’s world to life. By deconstructing these excerpts, Cohen reveals the architecture behind the storytelling—and how music, spoken word, scholarship, and historical voices can be woven together to illuminate both the ideas behind Mahler’s symphonies and the emotional and musical worlds within them.

Please register with the Barenboim-Said Akademie: AKADEMIE FORUM: AARON COHEN

In cooperation with Barenboim-Said Akademie