From stirring openings to flourishing finales and all the beautiful themes in between, this playlist will guide you through the evolution of the symphony from its beginnings in 18th-century Germany to today. Drawing on themes as diverse as love and war—and inspired by everything from travel to grief—the symphony is an enduringly fascinating musical form. As the great symphonist Gustav Mahler said to another master of the genre, Jean Sibelius, “A symphony must be like the world. It must embrace everything.”