Bruckner's Abbey

[Sergeant Rock]

Bazookas?!  Those are for wimps!



Say hello to my VERY BIG friend!   

The M65 Atomic Cannon...wow. I haven't seen a picture of that weapon since probably the 50s.

Sarge

[Sergeant Rock]

True, his tempo for the beginning of the 6th was sloooow from the get go, regrdless of the year or orchestra. But he made you (me) sit back and take a deep breath before launching a powerful Allegro.

Oh yeah. I like the way his slow tempo builds anticipation before the inevitable explosion.

Sarge

[Mirror Image]

Hah! He'd probably give an arm and a leg or any other combination of body parts necessary to reach the level of a Celibidache or a Jochum.

Well, music isn't some sort of competition. I just don't like S-L-O-W Bruckner. As for Davies giving an arm and leg to be able to reach the level of a Celibidache or a Jochum...well that's just a silly assertion on your part. I don't think Davies thinks he's better than anyone and I certainly don't think he'd give a rat's ass whether he was another Celibidache or Jochum. He has his own agenda and you can either respect it or not. I don't like Celibidach or Jochum and you don't like Davies. Fair enough...let's move on.

[Mirror Image]

                                MIRROR IMAGE

I'm really starting to feel the love around here.

[Mirror Image]

All of this negative talk of mine about Celibidache, I do plan to revisit his Bruckner EMI set at some point or at least listen to a few performances from it. See if I can get onboard with his view on Bruckner now.

[Wanderer]

Well, music isn't some sort of competition.

Well, you started this:

Can't be any more bland and boring than Celibidache or hell even Jochum. 0:)

As for Davies giving an arm and leg to be able to reach the level of a Celibidache or a Jochum...well that's just a silly assertion on your part. I don't think Davies thinks he's better than anyone and I certainly don't think he'd give a rat's ass whether he was another Celibidache or Jochum.

It's an assertion, same as yours, but mine actually does him credit. It's only natural for a second- or third-tier conductor to aspire to reach the level of the greats in the field.

[Mirror Image]

Well, you started this:

It's an assertion, same as yours, but mine actually does him credit. It's only natural for a second- or third-tier conductor to aspire to reach the level of the greats in the field.

But how do you know what Davies' aspirations are? I certainly don't claim to know.

[Wanderer]

I certainly don't claim to know.

You claimed that he has "an agenda", which apparently does not include aspiring to reach the level of better musicians. Your guess is as good as mine; mine is just not insulting to the man.

But how...

How is it that you made an aside against Celibidache and Jochum, it backfired and now you're being deliberately obtuse about it? No idea. Good call, though!

[Mirror Image]

You claimed that he has "an agenda", which apparently does not include aspiring to reach the level of better musicians. Your guess is as good as mine; mine is just not insulting to the man.

How is it that you made an aside against Celibidache and Jochum, it backfired and now you're being deliberately obtuse about it? No idea. Good call, though!

Accept my apologies. This particular dialogue between us will go no further.

Anyway, I'm listening to Sawallisch's B6 now and I've got to say this is just what the doctor ordered. My kind of Bruckner performance.

[Mirror Image]

On another note, has anyone heard this new B7 from Thielemann?

[Karl Henning]

I do need to spend some time with my Celi Bruckner box . . . .

[Mirror Image]

I do need to spend some time with my Celi Bruckner box . . . .

Same here, but it may be awhile before I can get around to it.

[jlaurson]

On another note, has anyone heard this new B7 from Thielemann?

I'm making it the CD of the Week later today. Also heard the performance live: http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2012/09/christian-thielemanns-inauguration.html
The B7 is fine, not great, I think. Slightly better on CD than live, I thought... but if it is the CD of the Week, it's because of the Wagner, not the Bruckner. (The Wagner was not part of that concert.)

[Mirror Image]

The B7 is fine, not great, I think. Slightly better on CD than live, I thought... but if it is the CD of the Week, it's because of the Wagner, not the Bruckner. (The Wagner was not part of that concert.)

Well, I can easily pass over it since it's not a great performance. I have zero interest in that Wagner work.

[Mirror Image]

I'm surprised Sawallisch's Bruckner doesn't get mentioned much here. He's utterly superb in this music. For me, everything is paced, phrased, and has the right amount of weight to the performances. The only performance of his I haven't heard is B1, but this is coming in the mail. Can't wait to hear this Saucy Maid. Also, what does everyone think of Georg Tintner's Bruckner cycle on Naxos? I have the box set, but, so far, I've only heard the 8th and wasn't particularly impressed with the rather scrappy playing for the orchestra. We'll see if my opinion changes over time.

[mjmosca]

Just bought (an am liking) Bruckner's Fifth conducted by Welser-Most with the LSO.  I hear some hate this disc--and perhaps there are betters out there--but for the price I paid I cannot make any objections about its worth. 

Overall, I think its a very good interpretation and I especially love the first two movements.

I love the recording by Welser-Most with the LSO. I think I have 7 recordings of the Fifth and this is one of my favorites. At the end of the last movement, which is, after all the great triumphant moment that the entire work has been leading to Welser-Most gets the antiphonal brass choirs perfectly- many recordings (Rogner, for example) have them too recessed, barely audible. I don't know why this recording is not more respected (American Record Guide disliked it pretty intensely). I would love to hear from others as to which recordings of the Fifth are their favorites and why. -thank you!

[Sergeant Rock]

I love the recording by Welser-Most with the LSO....I would love to hear from others as to which recordings of the Fifth are their favorites and why. -thank you!

W-M I really like. Interpretively at the opposite end from "monumental/epic" (exemplified by Celibidache or Marthé), he gives us Bruckner in swift, dramatic guise like Dohnányi/Cleveland, another favorite (and perhaps my desert island B5).

Another favorite is Jochum/Concertgebouw (on the Tahra label: a legendary live performance in which Jochum revives a Schalk  practice of introducing additional brass--4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones and tuba--at key points in the last movement).

Sarge

[Mirror Image]

I love the recording by Welser-Most with the LSO. I think I have 7 recordings of the Fifth and this is one of my favorites. At the end of the last movement, which is, after all the great triumphant moment that the entire work has been leading to Welser-Most gets the antiphonal brass choirs perfectly- many recordings (Rogner, for example) have them too recessed, barely audible. I don't know why this recording is not more respected (American Record Guide disliked it pretty intensely). I would love to hear from others as to which recordings of the Fifth are their favorites and why. -thank you!

For me, it's hard to beat HvK and Wand (Berliner Philharmoniker or Cologne Radio SO performance) in the 5th. Both HvK and Wand couldn't be any more different interpretatively, though. HvK has a grander, flowing, 'building cathedral' approach to Bruckner that just works wonders. Wand, on the other hand, offers a more down-to-earth approach but with a razor-sharp precision and clarity. Both approaches couldn't be any more valid IMHO. Ultimately, however, it boils down to what you would like from your Bruckner performances. I can't say I know Welser-Most's Bruckner, but he's never been a conductor that's been under my radar either, so this is perhaps why I've never heard any of his performances.

[Mirror Image]

I just want to say that Bruckner is The Composer of the Month in the July 2016 issue of BBC Music Magazine. I just bought it via my local Barnes & Nobles.

Posted from an Apple store.

[mjmosca]

Thank you Sarge and Mirror Image - I appreciate your advice. I am certainly going to get the Jochum performance that you recommended, Sarge, and the Wand performance that you, Mirror Image recommended. I have their recordings of the Bruckner 9 and enjoy each very much. Thanks!