The Symphony No. 2 by Gustav Mahler, known as the Resurrection Symphony, was written between 1888 and 1894, and first performed in 1895. Apart from theEighth Symphony, this symphony was Mahler's most popular and successful work during his lifetime. It is his first major work that would eventually mark his lifelong view of the beauty of afterlife and resurrection. In this large work, the composer further developed the creativity of "sound of the distance" and creating a "world of its own", aspects already seen in his First Symphony. The work lasts around eighty to ninety minutes and is conventionally labelled as being in the key of C minor; the 'New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians', labels the work's tonality as 'c--E♭'
