Like, scald-the-soles-of-a-power-droid’s-foot cruel: “The commission considers that a religion/belief system should be characterised by a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance.”

But in this most restless and despairing symphony of the Mahler cycle, Alsop chose cogency over trenchancy much of the time.

There is all that at the Delacorte Theater, but also a rare cogency — plus incredibly loud gunfire.