Orchestre Français des Jeunes

Music has a unique way of accompanying us through life’s deepest moments—our existential questions, our most intimate emotions, our longing for compassion. Few works embody this more profoundly than Das Lied von der Erde, a moving testament to the consoling power of music.

In 1908, Gustav Mahler was in the throes of profound personal anguish: the grief over his daughter’s death was compounded by major professional difficulties and serious health issues. Out of this painful period came Das Lied von der Erde , inspired by poems of Chinese origin and blending the intimacy of the lied with the sweeping power of the symphony. Across its six movements, Mahler explores the many shades of human solitude, from the ironic drinking song of the opening movement to the evocation of China in the third, culminating in the sixth movement’s funeral march, which gradually transforms into a profound communion with nature and the cosmos. Bertrand Couderc’s lighting gives this inward journey an almost otherworldly beauty, shared by mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor and tenor Matthew Cairns. Under the direction of its music director, Kristiina Poska, the Orchestre Français des Jeunes makes a much-anticipated return to the vocal repertoire at the Dijon Opera, following its acclaimed performance of Bluebeard’s Castle in 2025.

Musical director Kristiina Poska
Mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor
Ténor Matthew Cairns
Lighting and spatial staging Bertrand Couderc

^{Photo © Orchestre Français des Jeunes}