Their first appearance at the Proms in 2007 set the Royal Albert Hall alight. Back then, they were called the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela and famously are a product of the country's El Sistema programme which offers every child a free musical education. Led by their dynamic conductor Gustavo Dudamel, tonight they perform Mahler's second Symphony, Resurrection - a work for vast forces including offstage brass, two solo singers, and a large choir as well as the orchestra. Mahler takes listeners on a spectacular journey through the entire gamut of emotions and questions whether there is life after death. The symphony begins with a huge funeral march and across the work makes a progression from darkness to light - death to everlasting life. Presented by Katie Derham.
