The second volume of Signum's Mahler song survey is here, and it's a masterclass in making youthful angst sound gorgeous. The album covers the three books of Lieder und Gesänge that Mahler cranked out in his 20s, plus his first vocal masterpiece, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen. Pianist Joseph Middleton provides sensitive support and a rainbow of illustrative colors, while a cast of singers - including Sophie Rennert and Katharina Konradi - brings exuberance and intensity to these quirky early ditties. Highlights include Rennert's full-bodied take on Frühlingsmorgen and Konradi's theatrical rendition of Ablösung im Sommer, a bizarre celebration of a cuckoo that has tragically fallen off its perch. Because nothing says "youth and awakening" like a dead bird.