Gustav Mahler鈥檚 First Symphony makes for a breathtaking calling card 鈥� completed when the composer was just 27 and rich in allusions to the natural world, it absolutely fizzes with ideas and imagination. It鈥檚 the focal point of New Zealander Gemma New鈥檚 first Bridgewater Hall concert with the orchestra 鈥� which also includes Alissa Firsova鈥檚 potent evocation of the stormy affair between composer Alma Mahler and painter Oskar Kokoschka, and Elgar鈥檚 luscious song cycle, sung tonight by rising-star contralto Jess Dandy.
