Search - Anton Bruckner, Franz Welser-Most, Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester :: Bruckner: Symphony No. 8

Bowled over by Bruckner

Martin Antony | Exeter, UK | 01/10/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love to hear Bruckner live in the concert hall but very reluctantly on cd as the performances have tended to have their longeurs. Not so with this recording. It is exceptionally vivid and thrilling and has all the virtues of a "live" performance but such is the quality of the recording that one might be forgiven for thinking it was the result of inspired studio takes. Bruckner is revealed in all his glory in a performance which is refined, dramatic and above all, wonderfully paced. I was so enthralled that I had to play the whole thing again immediately after hearing it the first time. Unheard of for me with Bruckner recordings; I usually fast track to the good bits. The playing of the orchestra is wonderful. It is all so alert and vibrant. Other reviews have criticised this performance for it's want of spirituality, implying that a young orhcestra and conductor cannot deliver depth, merely excitement and accuracy. I cannot agree about the lack of profundity. The whole work is realised in a breathtaking way which fully matches it's titanic dimensions. For sheer excitement try the timpani entry at the bar before 50 in the scherzo or the opening of the finale. Awesome! The slow movement is very moving and builds inexorably to it's inevitable climax where Welser Most gets the orchestra to top it's already considerable achievement. This recording made me appreciate the symphony as an integrated whole and not the series of highlights it usually feels like. It had none of the pregnant pauses and meanderings which plague other accounts. I want to play it to anyone who thinks Bruckner is boring. it could be a life changing recording. I certainly find it life-enhancing."

One of the Best Bruckner 8th Symphonies Currently Available

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 12/06/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recent recording by conductor Franz Welser-Most and the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra is among the finest recordings of Bruckner's 8th Symphony ever made. Welser-Most offers a compelling, vibrant reading of the 8th Symphony which harkens more to early 20th Century orchestral music than to early to mid 19th Century Central European Classical and Romantic music. It is an interpretation that sounds more like Schoenberg and Stravinsky in portions of the score than any latter homage by Bruckner to Schumann, Brahms and Wagner. Much to his credit, his tempi remain consistent in each of the movements, without opting for some bizarre shifts in tempi which I've heard in other recordings and at least one live performance of this work. The Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra sounds like a younger version of the Berlin and Vienna philharmonics, offering precise, brilliant playing from all of its sections. It is truly one of Europe's first-class ensembles. EMI's sound engineers have done a fine job capturing a live performance as though it was a studio recording."

Departing from Bruckner tradition

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/03/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Early in his career, Welser-Most made a live Bruckner Seventh with the London Phil. (EMI) that revealed his take. For him, Bruckner should be light in texture, as transparent as possible, notably faster than usual, and above all never turgid or ponderous. If that stance appeals to you, this new Bruckner Eighth with the remarkably talented Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra 9here expanded to huge size) will be a winner. Having heard Welser-Most live, I can testify that he makes Bruckern sound mesmerizingly clear and eprfectly balanced.



I'm not so sure about the quality of soul long associated with this music, however. The touchstone is the sublime, deeply moving Adagio. Welser-Most isn't supple enough with his tempo or profound enough in his feeling, not compared to Karajan, Giulini, Harnoncourt, and Boulez. But switch to the faster movements and he sounds natural and refeshingly musical. Becasue the Bruckner Eighth is a very long piece of music, the greatest performances usher you into the cathedral and allow you to reach contemplative depths. W-M doesn't, which is why I can't give it five stars despite many virtues."