There is no point in discussing which is the best first symphony in music history. It is like asking which is the highest mountain. "The Titan”. Gustav Mahler’s first symphony. Apart from Brahms there is no serious challenger, but even his first symphony pales in comparison to this work, which not only changed the history of music but that of occidental culture as such, juxtaposing the sublime, antique ideal with the profane. This universal idea of ambivalence as an artistic ideal not only inspired the greatest of 20th century art but also millions of doctors to decorate their sober medical practices with Gustav Klimt's lavish women.