Bruckner : Symphonie No. 6

Album review

Alongside his rendition of Bruckner's 5th, this is one of the great recordings by this now little-known conductor, Heinz Rögner, who was a particularly important figure in East Germany from the 1970s until his death in 2001: he was the musical director of the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin for twenty years (1973-1993). What is most precious about Rögner's Bruckner is his ardour, his Dionysian madness, without the slightest trace of sentimentality or pathetic expression. Bruckner immediately takes on (almost) modern accents that are as surprising as they are necessary.

Bruckner sounds are very fluid here: in his six recordings of Bruckner's symphonies, Rögner chooses brisk tempos, and always takes care over the polyphony that shines through, providing memorable flashes of light. The accents are particularly vivid, each instrument plays with dazzling brilliance, and Rögner also surprises us with poignant dynamic crescendos, notably in the Adagio, whose conclusion here offers unparalleled beauty.

This is a very different approach of course from that of Jochum, Sawallisch or Celibidache, but certainly valuable. The sound recording is simply exceptional. © Pierre-Yves Lascar / Qobuz