Choral symphony simply an attempt at grandiose effect, though the composer's use of such forces earned the work the subtitle "Symphony of a Thousand" from his press agent (a name still applied to the symphony). Like Stravinsky, Mahler makes extensive and extended use of counterpoint, especially in the first part, "Veni Creator Spiritus". Throughout this section, according to music writer Michael Kennedy, Mahler displays considerable mastery in manipulating multiple independent melodic voices. Musicologist Deryck Cooke adds that Mahler handles his huge forces "with extraordinary clarity". Vaughan Williams also insisted on a balance between words and music in "A Sea Symphony", writing in
A Thousand Suns and raps of "A Thousand Suns" wind up monochromatic". Jim Farber of The "New York Daily News" gave the album one star out of five, saying, "no fewer than 15 cuts crowd the tight 47-minute length of the CD, many of them fragments or, more accurately, sonic non sequiturs". Jamie Primack of "The Badger Herald" wrote, "there are at least five filler tracks that contain nothing more than noise and sound bites ... the full-length songs aren’t particularly daring or interesting". Fans of the band were equally polarized by "A Thousand Suns". Initial signs of the fans' division over the