Bruckner: Symphony No. 7

Albumbeschreibung

Just as they do today, Anton Bruckner's symphonies posed challenges for listeners when they first appeared. The Symphony No. 7 in E major was the exception; it was beloved from the start and remains one of the composer's most popular works. This live recording of the work by Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra is the first to use the so-called original text complete edition, which includes a cymbals crash in the Adagio, which Bruckner later removed, and Wagner tubas beefing up the exuberant (for Bruckner) finale. However, what is really distinctive about the performance is simply that Rattle takes the accessibility of the work at face value. The Adagio, a memorial for Wagner, is straightforward and sober. The Scherzo, which shows Bruckner in full rustic mode, is bright and sunny, with the LSO brass keeping up with Rattle's forward momentum. The finale takes its rightful place as one of the most life-affirming Bruckner wrote. Somehow, the sound from the Barbican in London fails to work here; it needs a richer, more burnished tinge, but it is listenable, and the album conveys the pleasure listeners must have experienced even if no applause is included.

© James Manheim /TiVo