By Daniel Hathaway|Cleveland Classical
This article was originally published on Cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Franz Welser-Möst and The Cleveland Orchestra set a high musical bar early in their new season at Severance Music Center on Thursday with totally committed performances of unique works by Arthur Honegger and Gustav Mahler.
Honegger set out to express the horror of World War II in three arresting movements named after religious texts in his Symphony No. 3, subtitled “Symphonie liturgique.”
And Mahler, who once said, “A symphony must be like the world. It must contain everything,” turned away from that idea in his symphonic song cycle “Das lied von der Erde,” crafting a six-movement work that simply sought to capture the experience of being human on planet Earth.
Pairing the two pieces together on this program created a deeply philosophical dialogue.
Honeggar’s “Dies irae” parallels the cataclysmic Day of Judgement movement of the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass, blasting forth with the relentless, pulsating anger of a metronome. Jagged rhythms support contrasting lyrical lines, and the movement closes quietly with short notes in piano and low strings.
Welser-Möst coaxed a magnificent blend from the Orchestra in “De profundis clamavi,” which languidly conjures up Psalm 130 in its long, soulful lines. “Dona nobis pacem” turned short pulses in piano, bass clarinet and bassoons into a military march with snare drum. It ended quietly with fine solos by cellist Mark Kosower, concertmaster Joel Link, flutist Jessica Sindell and piccolo player Mary Kay Fink. The string section sounded luxurious.
Mahler’s “Das Lied” cycle was postponed from last season due to Welser-Möst’s illness. The work obviously has a special place in his heart, and he brought his unerring sense of pace and attention to detail to each of its six movements.
Mahler wrote the cycle — setting texts by Hans Bethge inspired by Chinese poetry — for two contrasting voice types, and tenor Limmie Pulliam and baritone Iurii Samoilov each brought captivating vocal qualities to bear on their performance.
Pulliam accessed his inner Heldentenor, making something heroic of “Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde,” and Samoilov longingly caressed each note and word of “Der Einsame in Herbst (The Lonely One in Autumn)” with gentle, unforced tone. Frank Rosenwein served up a wonderful oboe solo.
The tenor proved to be a great story teller in the youthful music of “Von der Jugend (Of Youth),” and Samoilov glided between the notes in the long vocal lines of “Von der Schönheit (Of Beauty)” with clear diction and heartfelt phrasing.
Pulliam was especially expressive in “Der Trunkene im Frühling (The Drunken One in Springtime),” enhanced by evocative solos from concertmaster Joel Link.
Drawing on two poems, “Der Abschied (The Farewell)” —one of the longest good-byes in classical music — began with long, low drone chords and an exquisite solo from Rosenwein that would return.
Exploring his entire baritone range, Samoilov brought a true sense of Weltschmertz to his pensive vocal lines, studded with nuances of color and Joshua Smith’s haunting flute solos.
After the long denouement — fully half of the whole cycle — Welser-Möst patiently let the final “Ewigs” retreat into nothingness and held the silence for a long minute before allowing the audience to erupt in a resounding ovation.
Daniel Hathaway is founder and editor of the online journal ClevelandClassical.com. He teaches music journalism at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music.
Published on ClevelandClassical.com October 9, 2025
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