At the peak of his skill, Mahler composed his dark and tragic 6th Symphony. A musical self-portrait in which he seems to predict the blows that life would have in store for him: the death of his young daughter, his dismissal as a conductor and his incurable heart disease.

The mirror he holds up to life sometimes displays a painful view of humanity – obsessive, destructive, always selfwounding, but Mahler also depicts humour, honesty and love.