Bruckner Symphony 2 Schaller

Immediately after completing the Second Symphony, Anton Bruckner (1824 1896) continued a fruitful compositional spree by starting the draft of his Third. He had no way of knowing then that this work would continue to occupy him for the rest of his life. Dedicated to Richard Wagner, the work was written in 1873, revised in 1877, and again in 1890. It is regarded by many as Bruckners artistic breakthrough. According to Rudolf Kloiber, the third symphony opens the sequence of Bruckners masterpieces, in which his creativity meets monumental ability of symphonic construction. On this release, Gerd Schaller leads the Philharmonie Festiva in the performance of the Third Symphony in its 1890 revised version. German conductor Gerd Schaller is best known for his performance and recording of rare works. He conducted the first full recordings of Bruckners output.

"In its second version of 1877, the Second is very compact; it is well balanced, and you can easily appreciate the large-scale arcs of tension and empathise with them. At the same time the huge contrasts are thrilling. It contains wonderful melodies. The Adagio is almost like a description of a wonderful landscape, by which I mean an inner and an external landscape. This is not programme music, but this movement in particular does exude a great sense of intimacy, closeness to nature and humanity - indeed, it radiates such an overwhelming sense of love that one simply cannot tear oneself away from it. The Scherzo on the other hand is at times coarse and abrasive. The Finale comes across as a whirling dance. So, in a nut-shell, it is a mystery to me why this symphony is not played more often. It is a masterpiece!" (Gerd Schaller)

Sound and space are mutually dependant. Which works sound best in which environment? Where can the spirit and character of the music most clearly be expressed? These questions are what inspired the conductor Gerd Schaller to embark on an ambitious major project in 2007: in the impressive environment of the abbey church that once formed part of Ebrach’s Cistercian monastery in Franconia, he directed his festival orchestra, the Philharmonie Festiva, in recordings of all of Anton Bruckner’s symphonies. What is special about this Bruckner cycle is that Schaller in some cases selected less well-known, ‘interim’ versions or variants that had previously never been performed but give revealing insights into Bruckner’s compositional approach.