On one of his many trips to the Netherlands, Gustav Mahler also visited The Hague. On October 2, 1909, he attended the performance of his Seventh Symphony in the no longer existing Building for Arts and Sciences. By automobile, a luxury at the time, Mahler entered The Hague with conductor Willem Mengelberg and friend and composer Alphons Diepenbrock. From hotel De Oude Doelen, where Mahler was staying, they took a ride to Scheveningen for a walk on the beach. However, this was not a great success. "The dreary loneliness of the sea disappearing in the mist and the colorless, closed hotels made Mahler nervous," an eyewitness told me. They returned immediately.

It hasn't stopped the Residentie Orkest from putting Mahler on its lecterns with great regularity over the past century. In December 2024, the monumental Fifth Symphony will be on the program under the direction of our chief conductor Anja Bihlmaier, and in May 2025, incoming chief conductor Jun Märkl will conduct the Fourth Symphony.