The Lucerne Festival each year opens with a concert given by the resident Lucerne Festival Orchestra. This is an elite ensemble founded by Claudio Abbado that is based on the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, to which are added internationally renowned soloists and chamber musicians. Marking the centenary of the
symphony's premiere in 1906, Abbado leads a heart-felt rendition of Mahler's
tragic and prophetic Symphony No. 6; the performance was made all the more
powerful because of Abbado's long association with Mahler's music.