Beethoven was the first to include trombones in symphonic music, introducing them to great dramatic effect in the last movement of his FifthSymphony (1808).
Mahler's FifthSymphony is another work that conquers death, moving from the funeral march of its opening movement to the unstoppable counterpoint of its finale.
The opening trumpet fanfare consists of a similar rhythmic theme, as in Beethoven's FifthSymphony: It shifts from repose to overt rage in a matter of seconds.
Tackling Mahler's FifthSymphony requires an expert team, and working with the musicians of the London Symphony Orchestra on such a monumental piece is like a dream come true.
Save for the "weeklies" that Jimmy reads (he favors the New Statesman) and the snippets of Ralph Vaughan Williams's FifthSymphony heard on the radio, there are no cultural markers on display beyond the text of the play itself.