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This is one of a series by David Holbrook of ‘Studies in the psychology of culture’, the only one so far on music. The main theme (p. 11) is that Mahler sought ego-integration and object synthesis by seeking to ‘restore the good object’, and that despite his unfavourable background he achieved the existentialist goal: to be. The argument is passionately defended and supported by quotations from many authors, notably Harry Guntrip, Melanie Klein, D. W. Winnicott, Martin Buber, Ludwig Binswanger, Victor Frankl, Rollo May. The author puts the onus of making connections between fundamentally incompatible models upon the reader.
The book contains much valuable information about Gustav Mahler culled from many sources, autobiographical, biographical, and analytical. It also includes in chapter nine a detailed analysis of the Ninth Symphony. One snag, however, is that, throughout the book, it is often difficult and sometimes impossible to decide whether the author is quoting, referring to the opinions of others, or giving his own views.
Mahler, man, conductor and composer, soared to great heights only to drop to the depths, an experience shared by susceptible listeners. His life was one of conflict with family and colleagues, with the musical scores of others and his own, and between body and soul. He became a famous interpreter of the music of others which, however, at times he altered. His own creations were heard in his lifetime with acclaim, with the exception of ‘Das Lied von der Erde’ and the Ninth Symphony, while the Tenth survived only as fragments—to be completed since by another.
The fundamental principle in Mahler's technique of composition was two-part counterpoint. This was the natural means for his expression of what lies at the root of all his work: a conflict, ( vide Michael Kennedy, Mahler, 1974. Laden, Dent.)
Demonic possession by his anima led to intense work. His major compositions were written in record time. Those periods were followed by extreme exhaustion