Donald Macleod explores Mahler's childhood in Bohemia and his studies in Vienna.

Gustav Mahler rose from humble beginnings on the fringes of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to become one of the most powerful figures in the musical establishment. Nowadays his symphonies are almost guaranteed to fill concert halls, but during his lifetime Mahler made his name as a conductor.

Mahler's early years were spent in rural Bohemia, and the sounds and songs of the countryside were to have a lasting influence on his music. His early songs are inspired by teenage sweethearts, while a prizewinning piece of chamber music composed at the Vienna Conservatoire shows the influence of Brahms, Schubert and Wagner. Mahler's passionate affair with a married woman brought on a creative torrent that led to the completion of his first symphony. Show less