Baltimore Symphony Orchestra percussionist John Locke stands beside conductor Marin Alsop, who holds the giant hammer Gustav Mahler includes in his Sixth Symphony. Izabel Zambrzycki/Baltimore Symphony Orchestra hide caption
Gustav Mahler
William Schimmel distills Mahler's lengthy Ninth Symphony down to under seven minutes. Illustration by Joan Chiverton hide caption
Members of the ensemble So Percussion join conductor Gustavo Dudamel for the U.S. premiere of David Lang's man made at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Doriane Raiman/for NPR Music hide caption
LA Philharmonic In Concert: Dudamel, Mahler And New Music
John Bonham of Led Zeppelin at the Los Angeles-area Inglewood Forum in 1973. Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage hide caption
Gustav Mahler wanted each of his symphonies to contain a world of emotions and ideas. Library of Congress hide caption
Classical albums we loved this year. NPR/Denise DeBelius hide caption
Mahler's ironic funeral march, in his first symphony, was inspired by this woodcut of forest animals bearing the hunter to his grave. wikimedia commons hide caption
Composer Peter Lieberson wrote his Neruda Songs for his wife, mezzo-soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson. Johansen Krause/Peter Lieberson hide caption