London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 (2023) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:03:32 minutes | 2,05 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © LSO Live

Conducting Bruckner, says Rattle, is a lifelong quest for some “extraordinary vista, some wonderful moment which leads you out of this world”. This certainly rings true for Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony, the opening theme for which is said to have come to him in a dream, played by an angel. This huge, glowing mountain-range of sound is all at once majestic, reverent and terrifying. This edition of the symphony by Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs was first performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and Sir Simon Rattle in September 2022, and the recording completes a set of three albums which also features Cohrs’ editions of Bruckner’s Fourth and Sixth symphonies. Making use of Bruckner’s discarded fragments and lesser-known material through his many revisions, this set of albums is a must-listen for lovers of Bruckner’s music, and gives us a glimpse into the composer’s untold musical thoughts.

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

Tracklist:
1. London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E Major, WAB 107 (Version 1881-83; Cohrs A07): I. Allegro moderato (19:52)
2. London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E Major, WAB 107 (Version 1881-83; Cohrs A07): II. Adagio. Sehr feierlich und langsam – Moderato (21:15)
3. London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E Major, WAB 107 (Version 1881-83; Cohrs A07): III. Scherzo. Sehr schnell – Trio. Etwas langsamer – Scherzo da capo (09:46)
4. London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle – Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E Major, WAB 107 (Version 1881-83; Cohrs A07): IV. Finale. Bewegt, doch nicht schnell (12:38)

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