Michael Tilson Thomas journeys to rural Bohemia to rediscover the inspirations of Gustav Mahler’s music, and traces Mahler’s life through the premiere of his first symphony in 1888.

San Francisco Symphony music director Michael Tilson Thomas journeys to rural Bohemia to rediscover the inspirations of Mahler’s music, and traces Gustav Mahler’s life through the premiere of his first symphony in 1888. It shocked the contemporary audience, but as Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony reveal, on location and in performance, this ground-breaking symphony contains elements of everything else that Mahler composed. Shot on location in the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, and in performance in San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall.

"A MAHLER JOURNEY" concert premieres Thursday, June 23, 2011, 10:00-11:00 p.m. ET.