It was the end of 1883, and Gustav Mahler experienced heartbreak. Mahler conveyed the experience in a letter to a friend, alluding to a new work: 'I have written a song cycle,' he wrote, 'six songs, all of which are dedicated to her.' 
The songs were conceived as if a wafaring man had suffered a heavy fate and now goes out into the world, wandering aimlessly. This six-part song cycle would ultimately become "Songs of a Wayfarer." 
Hosted by Eric Garcia.