AKADEMIE FORUM: AARON COHEN

The Architecture of Audio Documentary: Telling the Story of Mahler’s Music

Lecture

Gustav Mahler famously said, “A symphony must be like the world; it must embrace everything.” True to his word, he embraced a vast range of musical, philosophical, and spiritual ideas in his compositions. In this lecture, podcast producer and host Aaron Cohen explores the creative challenge of telling the story of Mahler’s music through audio documentary. Through a series of excerpts from the first four seasons of Embrace Everything—The World of Gustav Mahler, Cohen takes listeners behind the scenes to examine the choices that shape each sequence: when to let the music speak for itself, when to introduce narration, how interviews with musicians and scholars can illuminate what we hear, and how dramatic readings of historical texts can bring Mahler’s world to life. By deconstructing these excerpts, Cohen reveals the architecture behind the storytelling—and how music, spoken word, scholarship, and historical voices can be woven together to illuminate both the ideas behind Mahler’s symphonies and the emotional and musical worlds within them.

Aaron Cohen is an award-winning radio producer, writer, host, and Director of Broadcast Operations at New York Public Radio. In fall 2026, he is a fellow at the American Academy in Berlin. A graduate of McGill University in Montreal, he holds a Bachelor of Music in Oboe Performance and Computer Applications in Music. Since joining New York Public Radio in 2000, he has produced a wide range of programming, from live call-in shows and concert broadcasts to documentaries and other long-form audio. He has developed a particular expertise in creating documentaries about classical music and opera, including The Ring & I, a study of Wagner’s Ring cycle (2004), Clash of the Titans: An Exploration of Verdi & Wagner (2013), and Music Is a Holy Art: A Celebration of Richard Strauss (2014). His classical music features have been heard on WNYC, WQXR, American Public Media, the WFMT Radio Network, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and he has produced more than 50 features for the Metropolitan Opera. Cohen is the creator, writer, host, and producer of the award-winning, chart-topping podcast series Embrace Everything—The World of Gustav Mahler, an ambitious exploration of Mahler’s life and music through his symphonies. Four full seasons have been released to date, followed by a special season devoted to Mahler’s Rückert Songs in July 2026. The series combines documentary storytelling, scholarship, archival sources, dramatic readings, and interviews with leading conductors, orchestral musicians, and scholars to bring Mahler’s world and music to life.

Presented in English
Featuring a musical contribution by students of the Barenboim-Said Akademie