Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra

On this CD:

1. Symphony No. 9 in D Minor (Unfinished) (Löwe version; Carragan version), WAB 109 Feierlich, Misterioso
Composed by Anton Bruckner
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Colin Davis

2. Symphony No. 9 in D Minor (Unfinished) (Löwe version; Carragan version), WAB 109 Scherzo: Bewegt, lebhaft - Trio: Schnell - Scherzo
Composed by Anton Bruckner
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Colin Davis

3. Symphony No. 9 in D Minor (Unfinished) (Löwe version; Carragan version), WAB 109 Adagio: Langsam, feierlich
Composed by Anton Bruckner
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Colin Davis

Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra, Music, Anton Bruckner, Sir Colin Davis, London Symphony Orchestra, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Orchestral & Symphonic, Romantic Symphony, Symphonic

Average customer rating:

Decent Bruckner, but great LSO sound

Disappointing recording of great piece by great conductor

Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 - Sir Colin Davis / London Symphony Orchestra
Anton Bruckner , Sir Colin Davis , and London Symphony Orchestra
Manufacturer: Lso Live UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
General | Classical | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B000063DQH
Release Date: 2002-11-12

Tracks:

Feierlich, Misterioso
Scherzo: Bewegt, lebhaft - Trio: Schnell - Scherzo
Adagio: Langsam, feierlich

Customer Reviews:

Decent Bruckner, but great LSO sound.......2004-01-21

If you are going to buy a Bruckner symphony recording merely for an orchestra's sound, then this recording is recommended solely for this reason. It may be the best recording of the 9th symphony I own purely for technical reasons. However, it doesn't rank nearly as well as recordings of this symphony I have heard from the likes of Bernstein, Giulini, Haitink, Karajan, and especially Jochum, with the Dresden Staatskapelle (not the Berlin Philharmonic Deutsche Grammophon recording). All of the ones I've cited are either rich with passion or technically precise, opting for brisker tempi than Davis's. To his credit Sir Colin Davis is forging a memorable musical partnership with the London Symphony Orchestra, raising it in stature to among the top ten, if not five, symphony orchestras in the world. But unfortunately, Davis isn't nearly as interesting a conductor of Bruckner as he is of Berlioz, Sibelius or Beethoven.

Disappointing recording of great piece by great conductor.......2003-01-16

Bruckner is no ordinary symphonist, and even among his eight symphonies, the 9th stands out as "special". Bruckner died before completing the fourth movement, although he did leave behind extensive sketches. But unlike Mahler's 10th, or the Mozart Requiem, there has been very little interest in "completing" this work, as its 3-movement structure is in itself completely satisfying and I, for one, would no more think of tacking on a "finale" than I would of sticking chrome-plated plastic arms on the Venus de Milo. You might guess that I have about a dozen recordings of this symphony - I never tire of hearing it though new interpretations. Sir Colin Davis makes what I believe to be his Bruckner-recording debut with this release, recorded live at the Barbican in February 2002.

Sir Colin made a reputation for himself back in the 60's with his fire-eating recordings of Berlioz, and in the 70's with his first Sibelius cycle with the Boston Symphony. I've always been a fan of his, especially with Dvorak and Sibelius, and was eager to hear his "take" on Bruckner. Unfortunately, I was disappointed.

This performance is taken at a VERY slow pace - slower than Furtwangler's 1944, slower than Jochum, Karajan, or Tintner. The first movement suffers the most - at 28'33", it is eventually drained of life and the brass coda is stretched out of shape. The strings are recorded well but sound sluggish rather than sumptuous. The scherzo is *longer* than most other recordings but the reason isn't the actual tempo - for reasons best known to himself, Sir Colin inserts pauses (virtually stops) between sections. This creates (to my ear) a "gear-grinding" effect rather than the stamping malevolence I would normally associate with this movement. The finale is taken at a more usual pace, but I get no sense of either "architecture" (Karajan-style) nor of "spiritualism" (a la Jochum)- more like music by the book. At no extra charge, you get a howler printed in the liner notes: Bruckner's dates are given as 1906-1975!