Bruckner: Symphony No. 3 (First Version, 1873)

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Bruckner performances already began to arrive in advance of the bicentennial of the composer's birth in 2024. Conductor François-Xavier Roth has entered the competition with a symphony series at the helm of the Gürzenich Orchester Köln, where he is chief conductor. Roth is also the conductor of his own historical performance ensemble, Les Siècles, and while his Bruckner is performed on modern instruments, there are more than traces of his specialty here in the Symphony No. 3 in D minor, WAB 103. Roth's string section is medium-sized, his brass measured, and his textures transparent rather than hefty. Those enamored of the mighty readings by a Christian Thielemann or an Andris Nelsons may find this version underpowered, but by the same token, it is an encouraging bicentennial sign that Bruckner can inspire divergent interpretations, and Roth's version is well worth hearing and comparing to others. Sample the very beginning, where Roth makes the music into an analog to the opening of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, a field of fragments out of which themes emerge. His treatment here is exceptionally subtle. His finale is also quite strong, with bits of the musical world, such as a polka, jumping out of the symphonic background; his sound is quieter, but he paradoxically creates a larger musical space. The Gürzenich Orchester Köln responds well to Roth and punches a bit above its weight. This is a promising kickoff to the rounds of Bruckner recordings.

© James Manheim /TiVo