It all began with Beethoven. When that symphony cycle was complete, Finnish conductor Osmo Vanska forged a new cycle of critically acclaimed Sibelius Symphonies.

The second recording in that series earned Osmo Vanska and the Minnesota Orchestra a Grammy Award in 2014 for Best Orchestral Performance. Music Director Osmo Vanska says these two earlier recording projects helped to set the stage for their latest endeavor, a complete cycle of symphony recordings by the late great Romantic, Gustav Mahler, "During the process of the Beethoven symphonies we started to play Beethoven better and better Beethoven. The same with Sibelius. They have been a foundation for Mahler and we try to build from it and to make this kind of Mahler tradition."

The Minnesota Orchestra's Mahler tradition begins with his Symphony No. 5 in C Sharp minor.