Bruckner's Abbey

[Cato]

That's something to look forward to!

Incidentally I just listened to  Abbado and Lucerne FO in the 9th, the DG/Accentus release.
Shall not say too much about it, I consider myself a Bruckner novice.

Abbado is usually a safe choice for any work: I recall a concert with him conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in Beethoven's Symphony #4 followed by Schoenberg's Pelleas und Melisande.

The latter work was given chamber-like clarity and the climaxes were tremendously powerful!

The Bruckner Symphony IX performance here is considered a classic:

[Mirror Image]

I started the year off very in a Bruckner kind of mood and coincidently it's his anniversary year. A set that really blew my mind was this one with Rémy Ballot on the Gramola label:



Ballot's tempi are slow --- Celibidache slow. Ballot was Celibidache's last student and I think he rubbed off on him for the better, IMO. Anyway, this set was a revelation to me and the performances of the 2nd and 6th symphonies in particular almost left me breathless. The only symphony that isn't up to snuff is the 9th, which Ballot basically massacres the Scherzo with his expansive approach. It just doesn't work well to my ears. The first and third movements are handled beautifully, though. Anyway, I just thought I'd mention this set and express my enthusiasm for it.