Birth of Gustav Mahler
Birth of Gustav Mahler
Historical biography archive · Updated 2026-11-03
Gustav Mahler Biography and Timeline
Follow Gustav Mahler through 24 dated historical records for Germany.
Gustav Mahler, historical timeline
A chronological timeline drawn from matching World History Database records.
24Distinct records
1 of 1Page
1860–1911Years on this page
1860
1875
Education
Admitted to the Vienna Conservatoire where he studied piano under Julius Epstein, harmony with Robert Fuchs, and composition with Franz Krenn
Vienna Conservatoire
Admitted to the Vienna Conservatoire where he studied piano under Julius Epstein, harmony with Robert Fuchs, and composition with Franz Krenn
1887
Conductor
Takes over conducting Wagners Der Ring des Nibelungen from an ill Arthur Nikisch, firmly establishing his reputation among critics and public alike
1889
Symphony No 1
Composes, "Symphony No 1"
1891
Conductor
First long-term appointment was at the Hamburg Opera in 1891, where he stays until 1897
1897
Vienna Opera
Given the directorship of the Vienna Opera, the most prestigious musical position in the Austrian Empire
1902
Marriage
Mahler marries Alma Schindler (1879 -1964), twenty years his junior and the stepdaughter of the noted Viennese painter Carl Moll
Symphony No 5 in C-sharp minor/D major
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor/D major
1903
Symphony No 2 in C minor
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 2 in C minor
1905
Symphony No 7 in E minor
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 7 in E minor
1906
Symphony No 1 in D major
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 6 in A minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 3 in D minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 1 in D major
Symphony No 3 in D minor
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 6 in A minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 3 in D minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 1 in D major
Symphony No 6 in A minor
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 6 in A minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 3 in D minor. Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 1 in D major
1907
Symphony No 8 in E-flat major
Completes Symphony No. 8 in E-flat major
1909
Das Lied von der Erde
Completes Symphony No. 9 in D major. Completes Symphony Das Lied von der Erde (subtitled A Symphony for One Tenor and One Alto (or Baritone) Voice and Orchestra, After Hans Bethges "The Chinese Flute")
Symphony No 9 in D major
Completes Symphony No. 9 in D major. Completes Symphony Das Lied von der Erde (subtitled A Symphony for One Tenor and One Alto (or Baritone) Voice and Orchestra, After Hans Bethges "The Chinese Flute")
1910
Das Lied von der Erde
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 4 in G major. Completes his Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth), and his Symphony No. 9, which would be his last completed work
Symphony No 4 in G major
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 4 in G major. Completes his Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth), and his Symphony No. 9, which would be his last completed work
Symphony No 9
Completes the final revision of Symphony No. 4 in G major. Completes his Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth), and his Symphony No. 9, which would be his last completed work
1911
Health of Gustav Mahler
Mahlefallls seriously ill with a streptococcal blood infection, and conducts his last concert in a fever
Death of Gustav Mahler
Taken to Paris, where a new serum had recently been developed, does not respond and is taken back to Vienna at his request where he dies from his infection on 18 May 1911 at the age of 50, leaving his Symphony No. 10 unfinished. Death of Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahlers 9th Symphony premieres in
Gustav Mahlers 9th Symphony premieres in Vienna
beginning-to-end
Symphony No. 10 (1910-1911) (unfinished; a continuous "beginning-to-end" draft of 1,945 bars exists, but much of it is not fully elaborated and most of it not orchestrated.)
Records, sources and methodology
These dates and descriptions come from the historical_events database. Exact duplicate records have been collapsed. Names are grouped by the country, Name 2 and Name 1 fields; records with missing Name 2 cannot be reliably assigned to an individual biography. Check the underlying sources before formal citation.