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roonil-wazlib-at-221b · 6 years

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Protection: Part 4

He takes his sweet time visiting you. It’s nearly two hours later of you being bored out of your head before he walks through the door, smirking as always, and with bruised knuckles and blood on his shirt.

You raise an eyebrow at that—as if it’s supposed to intimidate you. Oh honey, you want to say condescendingly, if only you’ve seen the things I’ve done. You’ve done worse than punch someone. You know the human body inside and out and not from diagrams. And it’s a little messed up—okay, 100% messed up, but whatever.

“I want my dog and my purse,” you demand immediately. “With gun.”

“Are you really in a position to be making demands?” the mobster scoffs, crossing his arms. He looks really hot when he scowls, and the shirt accentuates his muscles. You could probably get him into bed, but you don’t like to not be in control, and you have no doubt he’s as controlling as they come. So you ignore his insanely good looks and snap back at him.

“Don’t pretend like this is some terrible thing forced upon you; it’s your fault I’m here at all!”

Harrison stands outside the door, chuckling as he listens to you two bicker, quite literally out for blood and at each other’s throats. He has no doubt Tom could woo you if he wanted, but it would certainly be a bigger challenge than any other girl. Too bad Tom doesn’t want to woo you. He’s told Haz time and time again that he can’t afford to be distracted from the business, that the business comes before everything. It would appear he’d subject himself to heartache and loneliness willingly.

Haz knows his relationship with Tom is too personal for the other boy’s liking, but he’s gotta relax around someone, right?

“None of your assassins have half as many confirmed kills as I do,” you snarl. “And trust me, hon, the real list is much longer.”

“So is theirs,” he argues back. His face is turning a little red. You’re pretty sure this is the first time he’s actually had an argument with someone. You’re going to love this whole ‘contract’ thing.

You bring your hands down to your sides angrily. “I’m the best of the best, and that’s the skill needed to take down a mob boss nearly as powerful as the Queen!”

He looks at you with hard eyes for a long time before asking, “Are you good enough to take me? A boss even more powerful than the Queen?”

You stare at him for a long moment, your brain working furiously. He might be curious, or want to see how good you think you are, but you’re mostly sure he wants to know if he should kill you using a loophole in the contract.

It’s probably a stupid move, but you’re not going to downplay your skills like they’re nothing and you didn’t work for every day for seventeen years to be the best, so you raise an eyebrow and say with a ‘duh’ voice, “Yeah. I could.” There are quite a few methods you could use, but you’d prefer to strangle him with your legs—you have no doubt Tom Holland between your thighs would be a sight to behold, even if he would be getting strangled to death.

You shake yourself out of those thoughts. God, I need to get away from this boy. You’ve thought about having sex with him more times in the last day than you’ve ever done before with any other boy. It’s stupid, especially considering he could kill you—but then again, so could a lot of other things, like falling down the stairs or breaking your neck doing a backflip. Or an aggressive goose. Just any goose, really. You hate geese.

You regret ever retiring—you’d forgotten how exhilarating it is to be an assassin. Sure, fanfictions are great and you’ll 100% read them whenever you can, but you crave the bloodshed you’d grown up to be used to.

Tom just sniffs, “I doubt that.”

“Want me to try?” you threaten.

“Not especially.” He takes out his phone to look at it. “You’ll be pleased to know that I’m going to deliver your target right to you, so to speak—I’m hosting a party in three weeks and he has just responded that he will be in attendance.”

The party was nearly two years ago, just a bit before your dad died, when you were seventeen and he was eighteen. It wasn’t anything sappy, Tom will insist, and he hates the phrase ‘Love at first sight’ but that’s… kinda what it was. You’d just walked in next to the only other person Tom’s father feared, as Y/F/N trained and hired the best assassins around. It was only a flimsy contract that kept Y/F/N from sending someone after Dominic and they both knew it. The contract, and the knowledge that Tom would respond with a vengeance and that you would have the biggest target on your head.

You were, and still are, shorter than Tom, but back then it was a much bigger difference. He’d heard about you before, all about how you were thirteen, able to fluster even the calmest men, and already had fifty-two confirmed kills and many more that weren’t confirmed. He’d known not to trust you, that the assassins Y/F/N trained doubled as spies and that many of them worked in his own household but they were impossible to smoke out (the thought had made him unable to sleep for months, knowing that at any moment his ‘guards’ could try to kill him, but thankfully between Dominic and Y/F/N there was a safe amount of respect). He was expecting a girl, probably stunningly pretty, with basically everything a girl could want, because a reputation’s gotta live up to the image, right? Well, you walked in with your Y/H/C hair and Y/E/C eyes and blew him away. He’d thought he was prepared; he was not.

You were more than beautiful, you were a goddess—but not in the conventional way, in some sort of ethereal way. The half-frown on your face only added to that illusion; making you look like some half-pissed-off goddess hoping to smite someone. You looked serious. Tom was immediately captivated.

He had immediately left all the simpering girls hoping to become the most powerful woman in Britain, summoning Harrison to his side with only his eyes, before leaving him to talk to someone hoping to make a deal just a few paces away from you, just in case he would need backup.

You hadn’t feared him at all; you’d looked at him with a gaze that undressed him in front of everyone else and instead of being angry, Tom had been embarrassed. He hadn’t believed that you had nearly gotten the late Harry Miller into bed before shooting him until then, but suddenly he had no doubt.

He’d fixed you with a look with, hopefully, the same amount of admiration, before introducing yourself.

“Y/N Y/L/N,” you’d said, glancing behind him at Haz. You’d caught him positioning his backup, of course. “You’re Dominic’s son?”

“Yes. You’re Y/F/N’s daughter?”

“Yes.” You’d smiled up at him at that, and his stomach had fluttered in a way he’d never felt before. “You’ve heard of me?”

“I’ve heard many things,” Tom had replied honestly.

You’d laughed, a light, pure sound filled with more joy than the laughter of all of the other girls here combined. “I hope only a few of them were bad.”

“Oh, quite a few were bad,” he’d insinuated, running his tongue slowly over his bottom lip. He’d never felt this need for someone before. “Were any of them true?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” You’d smiled once more, making Tom proud he’d pleased the goddess, and turned, taking a glass of champagne off a platter as you did so. You’d drained the glass in a second and handed it to Tom. His brain lagging a little, he’d nearly dropped it. Anyways, he’d fumbled with it before having a stable grip on it. When he looked up, you had disappeared into the crowd.

“What’s your deal?” Harrison had murmured, at Tom’s side in an instant, shooting his friend a bewildered look. “Why do you look like you just met the love of your life?”

Tom had had a dreamy look on his face until that. Quickly he’d schooled his face into one of pleasant detachment. “That was Y/N Y/L/N.”

Harrison had groaned.

Tom had shot his friend a glare. “What?”

“You, the most dangerous man in Britain, just fell for the most dangerous woman in America,” Haz had proclaimed.

“I did not,” Tom had protested.

“Come on, Tom,” Harrison had muttered. “She’s a witch, and so many people have fallen under her spell—is it so impossible to believe you were susceptible to it as well?”

Your laughter had grown louder as the night grew on, your smiles wider. Every time he saw one Tom fought the urge to fall onto his knees and worship you, but he doesn’t kneel for anyone. Still, he couldn’t help but fantasize a future in which you two could be together.

He doesn’t want a whiny girl who worries more about her nails than anything else to be his wife. He wants a girl who can defend herself, who can fend for herself in these cutthroat ballrooms and come out as the winner, the one who can shape words to her will, the one who can put men under her spell with a smile or a laugh. He wants a girl who he can talk about his business with, one who won’t shy away from his gun or freak out every time she sees it.

He wants a titanium girl.

He wants you.

@littlemarvelqueen @musical-whovian @lemirabitur @childofcrystals

#tom holland #tom holland x reader #tom holland write #tom holland imagine #mob!tom #mob au #tom holland x you #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland fanfic #tom holland fic #reader insert #you x tom holland #reader x tom holland

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thatsnakeman · 6 years

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➡ BUY: https://ift.tt/2LDHbPO ➡ MORE: https://ift.tt/2uEBbQt Step into the ethereal world of Shoegaze & Dream Pop! This introspective selection of blissed out pop and indie samples transports you deep into a dreamy world of long, droning riffs, melodic vintage synths, waves of distortion, harmonic phrases, muffled echoes and cascades of feedback; everything you need is here to take your listeners to another dimension! The pack has been constructed to maximize your workflow and creativity: Looking for the perfect texture to add a layer of warmth and interest to your track? Then dive into the Synth folder, filled to the brim with stunningly beautiful melody loops and chord progressions. Want some melodic guitar lines to add a live-feel and some extra depth to your mix? Then filter through the inspired selection of mesmerizing guitar samples (from atmospheric, reverbed and chopped up melodic patterns to washed out chord progressions. Beyond these elements, other sonics included are moving live Basses, epic Drums and a super user-friendly selection of one shots! All the sounds have been formatted to work in whatever tempo your track is in, making them extremely versatile and functional in multiple genres beyond Blissed out Pop and Shoegaze; from downtempo, DJ Shadow style tracks to Burial-esque Future Garage and much more! So, take the plunge into this otherworldly genre of Shoegaze and Dream Pop! Download contains: 144 x Total Files: 26 x Synth & Vox Loops 23 x Guitar Loops 14 x Bass Loops 29 x Drums & Percussion Loops 52 x One-Shots (FX, Hats & Cymbals, Kicks & Toms, Snares & Claps) Bpm range: 85, 90, 95, 100, 105 24 Bit 44.1kHz WAV Format 409MB [Unzipped WAV format]

#SAMPLE PACK #IFTTT #SoundCloud #SAMPLES #Loop #DRUMS #GUITAR

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mrwilliamcharley · 5 years

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The Best Remixes Of The Week 036

It’s been a minute but we’re finally back with fiery new remixes from Party Pupils, Marian Hill, LUCA LUSH, Daktyl, Hex Cougar, TYNAN, and more. Also check out our feisty Run The Remixes playlist on Spotify with all our all-time favorite remixes, updated weekly.

Billie Eilish – My Boy (Party Pupils Remix) | Stream

Party Pupils had an inspirational 2018 filled with magnificent remixes of Alison Wonderland, Matoma, MAX, and Mickey Valen. Kicking off the new year with one of their most anticipated remixes yet, Party Pupils have brought the funk to Billie Eilish‘s “My Boy”. Shiny and groove-riddled, Party Pupils’ future funk production perfectly backdrops Billie Eilish’s iconic sultry vocals. This is one of Party Pupils’ finest remixes to date.

Sabrina Carpenter – Sure Me (Marian Hill Remix) | Stream

Electro-pop duo Marian Hill are known for the creative remixes of Billie Eilish, Hayley Kiyoko, and Alina Baraz. Starting the new year off with a shiny new remix, Marian Hill have taken on Sabrina Carpenter‘s “Sue Me”. Flirty synth melodies float under soft piano chords and delicate percussion to bring a hip R&B vibe to the track. Beautifully sensual, Marian Hill’s “Sue Me” remix is a stunning bedroom banger.

MØ – Blur (Felix Cartal Remix) | Stream

Over the years, Felix Cartal has dropped some of our favorite remixes of pop artists like Wafia, Kiiara, and Anna Of The North. Back on his remix grind, Felix Cartal has unveiled a gorgeous remix of MØ‘s “Blur”. Felix Cartal overloads the track with sensational house-pop rhythms and sparkling percussion. Upbeat and hyperactive, Felix Cartal has delivered one of his best remixes yet.

Post Malone – Wow. (LUCA LUSH x Bishu Remix) | Free Download

LUCA LUSH and Bishu have joined forces to remix of Post Malone‘s hit “Wow”. Flipping the original record on its head, the earth-shattering basses displayed here will have you moving on the dancefloor. The enigmatic track sees the best of LUSH and Bishu, combining their masterful production techniques with bass sounds greater than life. As a bonus, you can catch LUCA LUSH and Bishu on tour this winter. – Omar Serrano

Hermitude – Stupid World (feat. Bibi Bourelly) [Daktyl Remix] | Stream

Daktyl filled 2018 with shimmering singles alongside MOONZz and Janelle Kroll before closing out the year with a glistening official remix of What So Not. Daktyl has now kicked off the new year with a flawless take on Hermitude‘s “Stupid World”. Daktyl floats breezy, chiming synths amidst wonky percussion to bring a soft future bass touch to the Hermitude original. This one will easy grab you with its exotic soundscape.

Illenium – God Damnit (ft. Call Me Karizma) [Hex Cougar Remix] | Stream

Hex Cougar has stepped up with some major official remixes of RL Grime, Alison Wonderland, and KRANE. Hot off his collaboration with graves, Hex Cougar has unleashed a fiery remix of Illenium‘s “God Damnit”. Slow building and trap-infested, Hex Cougar’s “God Damnit” remix is devious and dark in all the right ways. Hex Cougar has outdone himself with this remix.

Lil Skies – Red Roses (TYNAN & Benzi Flip) | Free Download

TYNAN is one of our favorite up and comers. Having collaborated alongside 1788-L, Ekali, ATLiens, and more, TYNAN has geared up for a monstrous Lil Skies remix with LA-based trap producer Benzi. Firing quick snares and mischievous basslines, TYNAN and Benzi give “Red Roses” a proper banger treatment.

Riot Ten & Lit Lords – Till We Die (JayKode Remix) | Stream

Riot Ten and Lit Lord‘s “Till We Die” remix packs kicked off Dim Mak Records‘ 2019 catalog in a big way. JayKode‘s remix was an easy standout with its furious percussion and sinister basslines which only amplified the track into an all-out banger. JayKode has seriously stepped up with this remix.

Cheat Codes – Feeling Of Falling (feat. Kim Petras) [Justin Caruso Remix] | Stream

Justin Caruso has shined with his official remixes of The Chainsmokers, Marshmello, Lost Kings, Alessia Cara, and more. Kicking off 2019 with a new official remix, Justin Caruso has flipped Cheat Codes‘ “Feeling Of Falling” into a dreamy dance-pop creation. Bouncy basslines and airy vocal chops bring a sultry house-inspired vibe to the track that is absolutely sensational. Justin Caruso has outdone himself with this one.

Swedish House Mafia – Save The World (KLOUD Remix) | Free Download

KLOUD has surfaced as an impeccably creative remixer. His recent take on Porter Robinson’s classic “Sad Machine” absolutely floored us with its innovative reinterpretation. Now taking on Swedish House Mafia, KLOUD has once again worked his magic on “Save The World”. Perfectly timed with Swedish House Mafia’s resurgence, KLOUD brings a beautiful future bass feel to the classic EDM anthem while still paying homage to the original. KLOUD is definitely one to watch this year.

Charli XCX & Troye Sivan – 1999 (Young Franco Remix) | Stream

When it comes to Australian house producers, there’s no one finer than Brisbane-based Young Franco. Last year, he released an official Dua Lipa remix before unveiling his gorgeous single “Girls Don’t Cry” and heading off on a sold-out headline tour of Australia. Already shaking things up in 2019, Young Franco has been tapped for an official remix of Charli XCX and Troye Sivan’s “1999”. Glistening with shiny percussion and flirty basslines, Young Franco douses “1999” with sultry retro vibes that are absolutely irresistible. There’s a funky rhythmic groove to the remix that is stunningly sensational and fantastically danceable.

Skrillex X Wolfgang Gartner – DEVILS DEN (LICK Remix) | Free Download

LICK is yet another midtempo producer rising to the front of the scene. With hits like “BLOOD RAVE“, “11PM”, and his recent “Angel Voices” edit, the dark DJ has been making a name for himself lately. To start off the new year, LICK put a spin on a Skrillex classic, remixing “Devils Den” from his Bangarang EP. Flipping the happy electro original into a bass-heavy nightmarish soundscape, LICK’s take on the track completely rebuilds what you knew about sampling and remixing. LICK commands risers and drums from the original track to do his bidding in this unruly bass flip. – Aaron Root

Disclosure – Magnets (Justice Skolnik Remix) | Free Download

Bay area prodigy remixer Justice Skolnik is ready to be a household name. He dropped only two tracks in 2018, choosing instead to focus on writing a ton of new music. His latest rework of Disclosure and Lorde’s “Magnets” showcases Justice Skolnik’s knack for catchy songwriting and groove-riddled creation. Justice Skolnik is destined to be unstoppable this year. – Owen Hurley

Lana Del Rey – Dark Paradise (Kaivon Remix) | Free Download

Kaivon has seriously impressed with his monumental remixes of Alison Wonderland, Flume, and RL Grime. His latest spins Lana Del Rey‘s “Dark Paradise” into a dark, eerie future bass banger. Grimey basslines and crisp snares bring a devious nature to the Lana Del Rey original that is perfectly fitting for her iconic ethereal vocals. Kaivon is definitely one to keep an eye on this year.

Skrillex – Summit (feat. Ellie Goulding) [ATLAST Remix] | Free Download

ATLAST has outdone himself with his recent take on Skrillex and Ellie Goulding‘s “Summit”. While the original is a soft melodic composition, ATLAST takes it in the complete opposite direction. He turns the classic song into a midtempo dancefloor monster that will have your subs shaking. – Hunter Thompson

QUIX & Matroda – LAMBO (RUVLO Remix) | Free Download

QUIX and Matroda‘s “LAMBO” was one of the biggest bangers of 2018. Getting a proper official remix, Staten Island producer RUVLO has been tapped for the opportunity. Bringing all the necessary components of a good trap banger to the table, RUVLO’s “LAMBO” remix is seriously festival ready. This one goes hard.

Phoenix – 1901 (Baaku & Zephure Remix) | Free Download

Newcomer Baaku has caught our eye with his impressive remixes of Bon Iver, The Chainsmokers, and Justin Caruso. Back with another flawless remix, Baaku has teamed up with Yetep collaborator Zephure to flip Phoenix‘s “1901”. Spinning the throwback alt-indie track into a future bass banger, Baaku and Zephure bring a burst of dance vibes to “1901”. Baaku and Zephure have crafted an absolutely phenomenal remix.

Asking Alexandria – Alone In A Room (Airmow Remix) | Stream

Airmow has surfaced with some wild remixes of Jon Bellion, One Republic, and Benny Blanco. Kicking off the year in style, Airmow has spun Asking Alexandria‘s “Alone In A Room” into a trap masterpiece. Spinning the rock original into an edgy trap banger, Airmow floods the track with grungy basslines and sharp percussion. Airmow is certainly one to keep an eye on this year.

Benny Blanco – Roses (ft. Juice WRLD & Brendon Urie) [Arcando Remix] | Free Download

Arcando has astounded with his luxurious remixes of The Chainsmokers, David Guetta, and Bastille. Fueling his energy into Benny Blanco‘s “Roses”, Arcando has flipped the Juice WRLD and Brendon Urie featured track into a creation of his own. Firing bright synths and melodic vocal chops, Arcando has brought new life to “Roses”. Arcando is definitely one to watch this year.

Marshmello – Happier (hot mess Flip) | Free Download

DC-based producer hot mess has been garnering attention with his remixes of Khalid and Hayden James but his recent flip of Marshmello‘s “Happier” has truly made him stand out. Bringing a tribal feel to “Happier”, hot mess takes a different approach by smoothing the track into a soft and luxurious slow banger. This one is sure to catch your ear.

Timbaland – Apologize (ft. OneRepublic) [Tom Wilson Remix] | Free Download

Tom Wilson first caught our eye with his imaginative remix of Benny Blanco’s “Eastside”. Taking on Timbaland and One Republic‘s classic “Apologize”, Tom Wilson has spun the track into a wild future bass banger. Smashing basslines and echoing vocals spin around quick snares to bring a punch to the pop original. Tom Wilson has outdone himself with this remix.

Charli XCX & Troye Sivan – 1999 (Hyperclap Remix) | Free Download

Up and coming duo Hyperclap have shined with their latest remix of Charli XCX and Troye Sivan‘s “1999”. Their tropical future bass approach is instantly infectious as it springs to life with its vibrant percussion and sultry vocal chops. Hyperclap have certainly caught our eye with this one.

QuinnXCII – Straightjacket (Goons Remix) | Free Download

Newcomer Goons has brought a wondrous blues-inspired take to Quinn XCII‘s “Straightjacket” that is deserving of attention. Filling the track with jazzy rhythms and future bass melodies, Goons has crafted an impeccably creative remix. Goons has a unique and unparalleled style that is certainly fitting of applause.

–

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'The Best Remixes Of The Week 036

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grishaperil · 6 years

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by Tom Service

Let’s begin at the end. The final page of the last, cataclysmically slow movement of Mahler’s Ninth Symphony is one of the most famously death-haunted places in orchestral music, a moment in which the music slowly, achingly, bridges the existential gap between sound and silence, presence and absence, life and death. The very last bar is even marked, pianississimo, with a long pause – “ersterbend” (dying), as if its message wasn’t already clear enough.

As musical ideas that have dominated this movement, the whole symphony, and even other works by Mahler, dissolve into the ether – becoming slower, quieter, emptier, and more stunningly, breathtakingly etiolated and gossamer-thin in sound and substance – it all amounts to convincing evidence to support Leonard Bernstein’s view, shared by many of his conductor colleagues and listeners, too, that this music stands for a whole suite of deaths. There's Mahler’s own, since this is his last completed symphony, after he had witnessed the death of his daughter and when he knew that his life would be cut short by his heart condition. There's the death of tonality, which – in the musical context of 1910, this piece emblematically signals. It even heralds the death throes of the figure of the artist as hero in European culture.

The rest of the symphony, according to another Bernsteinian point of view, prefigues the jackboots of the world wars. And when you listen to Bernstein, or Claudio Abbado, or Herbert von Karajan, or the majority of contemporary interpreters of the Ninth Symphony, you are given no choice but to go on a journey through the veil to a glimpse of some other realm beyond worldly experience. I’ve described the end of Abbado’s performance with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, and the minutes of silence that follows it in this live recording, as one of the most revelatory, transformative experiences of my musical life. And I’m confident it will be for you as well when you watch the performance.

Yet there is another way of thinking about this music, and there’s another way of conducting it, hearing it, and experiencing it. It turns on whether you think of this piece as a hymn to the end of all things, or instead, as an ultimately affirmativelove-song to life and to mortality. (It can be both at the same time, of course, but bear with me.) The reason that performance is so important in this piece is that a conductor’s view of the music, especially that final, slow movement, can take the symphony in different directions. Bruno Walter, a close friend of Mahler’s who conducted the Ninth’s posthumous premiere in 1912, performed and recorded the piece with Vienna Philharmonic in 1938. His finale takes just over 18 minutes, whereas Bernstein with the Israel Philharmonic takes half an hour. (It’s pure speculation, but Walter may have conducted the piece even more swiftly in 1912, since his interpretations tended to get slower in his later musical life.) That goes beyond a mere difference of tempo, it makes the piece a radically different musical and emotional entity. Listen to the very opening of both performances to hear what I mean: Walter’s almost vibrato-less violins make a single phrase out of that ascent to the turn figure that will dominate the whole movement, in a breath that you could sing. But Bernstein and his players wring a feverish intensity from every note, and they turn that opening idea into a catalogue of trauma instead of a single musical statement – and so it goes on, throughout the movement.

The finale is only the most extreme example of a tendency you can hear throughout the symphony. Seemingly, there’s much more evidence to support the hymn-to-death approach: the halting rhythm you hear right at the start of the symphony in the horn, which becomes a massively disturbing dark fanfare in the rest of the huge first movement, has been interpreted as a transliteration of Mahler’s faltering heartbeat, the rustic-grotesque of the scherzo is a sort of surreal, Brueghel-esque dark pastoral, and the third movement, the Rondo-Burleske, spits out its contrapuntal ferocity with sardonic energy, in what could be Mahler’s “screw-you guys” to those who said he couldn’t write polyphony (in fact this whole symphony sounds out Mahler’s most subtle polyphony of motive, theme and harmony, in ways that really do prefigure Schoenberg's and Webern’s music of the late 19-teens).

But consider this: the sighing idea that you hear in the second violins at the start of the symphony, two notes and an interval (F sharp-E) that are at the heart of the opening movement and the whole symphony’s melodic material, is connected to something rather surprising: a waltz by Johann Strauss that Mahler certainly knew, called Enjoy Life. Mahler makes the thematic link explicit later on in the movement, and clearest of all in its closing bars (listen to this excellent summary of the connections made by this YouTube user) and he does so with tenderness rather than irony. The trauma of the climaxes in this unprecedented first movement is not in doubt, but what’s at stake is what they mean: are they the sounds of a catastrophe that’s about to happen? Or are they the result of a life-force straining every fibre of its being to resist the inevitable, and to relish instead the fragility of life’s pleasures? There is the same dichotomy at play in the scherzo, in which you can interpret the tensions between playfulness and warped, hobbled dance-rhythms as a struggle to hold on to an elusive, simple joyfulness. And in the Rondo-Burleske, in the middle of the storm of counterpoint, there are epiphanies of stillness and visionary escape, as the solo trumpet calls out a melodic figure that will go on to define the next, final movement.

All that means there’s another way of thinking about the finale: it’s music that tries not to depict a musical or philosophical death, but instead, does everything it can to hold on to existence. On that last page, there’s a quote from the fourth of Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder, accompanying the words “the day is beautiful”. Again, it’s an image of hanging on to the beauties of life even in the face of death, rather than a morbid fascination with what lies beyond.

Yet whatever decisions conductors make about Mahler’s Ninth Symphony, it’s up to us listeners to make of the piece what we want. And what’s thrilling about this music, and the performances below, is that it can be more than one thing simultaneously. One final thought, maybe the most obvious of all: far from going gently into a sort of pre-deathly contemplation, Mahler was full of plans, action, and music in the years when he was writing the Ninth Symphony. He was taking up his post at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, writing Das Lied von der Erde, preparing for the premiere of the Eighth Symphony, and writing, but not completing, what would truly be his last symphony, the Tenth. That’s another danger of thinking about that last page of the Ninth Symphony as the end of Mahler’s compositional life. It’s not: for Mahler, and maybe for us, it should be an insight into life – albeit a life transformed after the intensity of what you’ll have been through after listening to any complete performance of his symphony – rather than a leaving of it.

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