1. Gustav Mahler was a melancholy man.

Discrimination because he was born

Jewish, the death of his brothers, and the abuse of his parents devastated his
mind. But these childhood tragedies had a big impact on his music. He began
to strengthen his position as a conductor after the ‘Das Klagend Lied’, which
he composed in college, failed to win a prize. Even on vacation, he is devoted
to composing and eventually releases symphonies. But he suffered heart and
mental illness due to his daughter's death and his wife's extramarital affair,
and eventually went to Freud, the best European psychiatrist. He died in
Vienna at the age of 50 from a disease he was suffering from, and was buried
next to his daughter's grave according to his will. These are also the cause of
his complex musical characteristics. His music was, in a word, irregular. It
was also very impromptu and the mood of the song was constantly changed.
His music, which had no boundaries, made the audience treat him as a
madman. He also used folk songs to compose songs and symphonies.
Typically, his Symphonies No. 1 to 4 based on ”The Youth's Magic Horn", a
collection of German folk poetry. As a composer of the Romanticism, he
expanded his emotions and used the polyphonic textures associated with the
change of color. And one of his musical characteristics is that he placed great
importance on orchestral forces. Finally, he used off-stage ensembles and
voices in his work. These are his typical musical characteristics, and the next
thing to explain is Mahler as a composer. As I said earlier, he experienced his
first failure and lived his life as a conductor for a while. Nevertheless, without
giving up his passion for composing, he completed nine symphonies except
the last Symphony. His entire symphony is preserved in writing, which is not
even found in Tchaikovsky or Dvorak. He also used orchestral
accompaniment instead of piano accompaniment to present a new direction
to future generations' lieders. And one of his achievements as a composer is
that he has finished romanticism. He led the tonality to the boundary of the
atonality, almost eliminating the tonality sense of the symphony. This is why
he is said to have extended the symphony to the final dismantling point, and
most directly influenced the next generation of composers such as Schonberg
and Webern. In short, he is a musician who pioneered the future between
boundary of romanticism and Contemporary music. ‘My time will come, that
is: after the finish of the recurring song cycles’. This is one of the famous
quotes of Mahler. And now, his prediction has become a reality. His popularity
soared, and a fandom named 'Mahlerian' also appeared.
2. A. There is a connection between Mahler ‘s Das lied von der erde and
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. It is called ‘Curse of Ninth’, which is a jinx that
has emerged among classical musicians, and it is said that composing
Symphony No. 9 will kill them. After Beethoven passed away with nine
symphonies, numerous composers wrote symphonies, but most of them
passed away without leaving more than No.9, and began to be referred to as
the curse of the ninth symphony. And of course, Mahler was no exception to
this curse. To avoid this curse, Mahler names it 'Song of the Earth' after No.8
by adding vocal instead of No.9. So Mahler safely wrote the next symphony,
 but it became the symphony no.9 and eventually died without completing the
symphony no.10. This is why Arnold Schönberg referred to Mahler as the first
composer to actually experience the "Curse of Symphony No. 9". Mahler so
had a particularly strong influence on two composers, Anton von Webern and
Alban Berg. They were also the favorite disciples of Schonberg. Rather,
Schonberg, a fervent follower of Mahler, was not much influenced by Mahler.
First of all, Berg's best masterpiece, "Wozzeck," is an opera that embodies
the spirit of Mahler's symphony. The dull rhythm that comes after the main
character's wife's death resembles the tragic motif of Mahler Symphony No.
6, and the part in which an orchestra accompanied by a percussion
instrument appears to be a roar is similar to the finale of Mahler's Symphony
No. 2 "Resurrection". In Berg's last violin concerto "To The Memory Of An
Angel," Mahler's features, including landler, quotation of folk song and
catastrophe, are also well illustrated. And another disciple, Webern, learned
from Mahler 'the chamber musical delicacy and moderation.' It was quite the
opposite of Berg, who had learned 'abundance and Romantic spirit'. 'Five
Pieces for Orchestra Op.10' are organized with cowbells, guitars and
mandolin, giving a strong impression of Mahler.
2. B. "Song of the Earth" consists of a total of six movements, with each
movement showing different lyrics. The first movement introduces the story
which the narrator is trying to tell us, and the second movement talks about
nature and expresses his loneliness. The third and fourth movement,
respectively, depicts the appearance of a pavilion and the man that appeared
before the young women, and the fifth movement shows the narrator's
grumbling. And in the last movement, the narrator bid farewell to the grieving
earth. The topic that can be recognized through these lyrics is the sadness
that even beautiful and valuable things like youth and friendship end up
parting. The reason why he chose this theme was because he was inspired
by Oriental nihilism, the spirit of seeking beauty, the entertainment and
relaxation of the Orient. At the time of composing "Song of the Earth," he
needed something to calm his mind because he was suffering from extreme
mental exhaustion due to fears of chronic disease and anxiety caused by his
wife's eAlso mentioned above.The reason why he called the
composition a song of the earth is to avoid the curse of Symphony
No. 9.xtramarital affairs.