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He is so great, his time hasn't come yet. For me he comes after Bach and Beethoven. No other composer reached his spirituality hidden in his rich music
@@SlumberBear2k The finale of the 9th is available and most of the material is from Bruckner. Its available for free on youtube. Give it a listen. Personally I think its very good. Background ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aWYC7MBa78M.html Movement ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iBXaHXI4DRk.html
Cannot agree more It swept the ground beneath my feet when I heard it first time in winter 2023 The Scherzo (second movement) literally transported me into Old Testament Biblical time I may sound mad, I met prophet Samuel playing the horn!!! Since that day, I am glued to Bruckner I thank Lord I found Bruckner in random surfing Beethoven is still my top fav for me the buzz word is Bruckner Waq - savage from Lahore, Pakistan Post Script :The Scherzo (Movt No 3) in Symphony No 7 moves every atom of my being. Most monstrous music I encountered in recent memory My choice of conductor :Herbert Von Karajaan
Me too. But the thing that really first struck me is the sheer 'purity' of the music (No 7). Here was a composer aiming for the lofty heights but never trying to overtly mpress the listener with his musical skills but instead reaching out to his God with honesty, sublimity and awesome grandeur. For me his only real rival is Bach in this regard.
I’m a bass trombonist and I’ve played bruckner 8 irl and bruckner is a monster when he writes for brass It’s so violent and epic but sounds beautiful when played right Love from Sweden
What an excellent article. At age 76, I'm pretty familiar with most classical music but Bruckner always bypassed me. I'm inspired now to pay attention . Thank you.
I'm currently going through all of his symphonies for the enth time. I detest folk who continuously state that Bruckner's music is 'boring'. They're all missing the point. I'm hoping that all orchestras mark the bi-centenary of his birth next year.....2024..... and perform his symphonies everywhere. People regard him as odd. He wasn't. He was a very spiritual man and that placed him at a distance from his more overtly Romantic contemporaries. There is much to learn from his music.
One quality that I like to bring up when talking about Bruckner symphonies is slowness. The sound progresses slowly no matter the tempo of interpreters, it's there by design. And that's why some people say that they get bored - it takes patience to listen to these works. Personally, I love them and for me, it's a pinnacle of symphonic music. The end of the road is the more impressive, the longer it took to get there - that's the general idea behind Bruckner's musical constructs.
It greatly depends on the type of conducting, and that is highly subjective. I get bored to death at Chelibidache's slow renditions, while many love it. Bruckner varies so much from conductor to conductor, that going to see his symphonies live is almost a lottery. Sometimes he makes no sense, other times you're watching the galaxy explode. And once you've felt the climax, it becomes a drug. He's unlike any other composer. Maybe Mahler's 2nd, Brahms' 4th and Bach's Passacaglia come somewhat close in intention, but no so much in effect.
@@ofiterpunteAlso you could easily add Mahler’s 8th to this row 😊 Definitely Bach’s Passacaglia - I agree. That piece alone could have given Bruckner deep emotional and spiritual inspirations to compose his masterpieces. Imagine Bruckner starting the day practicing organ, and among other pieces there certainly was a Pssacaglia... By the time you are in the middle of the fugue, your creative juices are at a zenith ! Most likely at some point Bruckner switched to his improvisation for few hours... Than notated everything painstakingly. We’ll never know his MO of composition, inspiration etc. As for an organist, Bach’s Passacaglia must certainly played a role in his daily composition process. Not to quote anything, but rather a sheer emotion evoked by Bach’s masterpiece could have served as a catalyst into his scores studies (and inner hearing) of Beethoven’s 9th, Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde etc. for orchestral color. Pure Genius !
@@davekeyes5589I wish I could find out which exact performances the author of this video uses as a background here. I love the brisker tempos, and recording quality.
I turned my late wife onto Bruckner, which she came to love! That slowness... she found it 'soothing', which may be a unique response to Bruckner! But sometimes we can all use a broad, deep emotional/spiritual experience to clear away the cobwebs of our noisy everyday lives (that almost sounds like Buddhism!). We leave exhausted but enriched............. By the way, one Bruckner symphony that doesn't get enough love enough from Bruckner junkies is the so called Symphony No 0. It gets SO close to Bruckner's stylistic maturity. But he "annulled" it, crossing out the title page and throwing it into a trunk, to be found many years later. Why? A conductor had a stupid question about the beginning of the symphony, and to the very insecure Bruckner that meant it wasn't any good.
I'm a dedicated, fanatical Bruckner lover. This exciting documentary of fervent praise for my beloved Master Composer just brought so much satisfaction to my heart. Thank you very much, it is so well done. Bravo!!!
I just found his music, I am so grateful that I have had the opportunity to listen to his music. He is , for me , like Bach and Beethoven. The most spiritual work of art in last 100 years or so.
I love❤️❤️ all his symphonies. My friends think i'm crazy for it. For me, brilliant in some passages of his symphonies and the homage to Wagner of the 7 is wonderful. For me, the eighth symphony is his masterpiece.
The crazies shall inherit the earth. The 8th is truly heaven storming. I am coming around to the thornier 5th. A most remarkable symphony. An he was called a simpleton? Baloney!
@@katrinat.3032 From his religious works like Messa 1, 2 or 3. Then listen to his 10 symphonies from 0 to 9 , in my opinion , the 4 and 8 symphonies are the musterpiece. Also note carefully the symphony 7 and 9. Hoping to have been of help.
@@frencuk1 Good advice, frencuk 1. Bruckner does take patience, but is well worth the effort. One problem: We seem to be in a hurry today for instant gratification. You can't rush Bruckner. You take Bruckner on his terms. This was a great composer who spent many solitary hours in the organ loft. My favorite Bruckner symphony? The one I happen to be listening to at the time. Difficult to choose. The real "simpletons" were the fools who thought Anton Bruckner a rustic idiot. His answer? The gorgeous 7th and the mighty 8th.
Bruckner is and will always be one of my favourite composers, I absolutely love his 7th and 9th symphony. And I’m glad I’ve heard his 9th live, what a monumental though beautiful work!
You should also listen to his 8th! His 9th is probably his best symphony, but his 8th is definitely the most epic and, for me, the most "fun" to listen to.
@@rafexrafexowski4754 Hi, can you write in more detail about the 8th part? I listened to it in different versions, but I would like to see more recommendations
@@Dredfost, try Boulez & Vienna Philharmonic, live at the International Bruckner Festival, 1996. Sonics aren't too old because it was well recorded for the time. Boulez strikes a balance between ecstatic emotionalism and structural clarity which Bruckner's music always needs.
To me, Bruckner belongs among the four-Bs. His music can bring you to ecstatic heights rarely matched anywhere else. It’s a shame he’s not more popular today.
I love how Bruckner's symphonies sound like epic space explorations, the cathedral-like open space of his soundscapes is probably what does it for me. The nebulas and alien worlds in the intro are very fitting :). He was definitely THE big influence behind epic space movie soundtracks. I think that's where my association comes from.
Performed his Te Deum in May as part of a huge choir, accompanied by a large orchestra and conducted by Hartmut Haenchen (and we did the Te Deum as the last movement of his 9th symphony, which alsp slaps). Rarely have I felt more alive. His music is electrifying.
If there's one piece of music that really steered me to a life of passionate love for classical music, it's Bruckner's 6th symphony. Klemperer's recording with the New Philharmonia, to be precise. It was my "Wow, nobody told me it could do _that!_ " moment.
I couldn't imagine living without Bach and Bruckner. I have adored Bruckner's music since my teens so I didn't really need to learn why I should listen to him. However anything which promotes Bruckner and his music gets my vote so thanks for a great video. For anyone approaching Bruckner for the first time I strongly recommend seeking out performances conducted by Günter Wand. He plays the music with absolute integrity and faithfulness to Bruckner's vision. Other conductors are available of course but for me there is always something special about a Wand performance.
Some years back, I was in the Proms arena, almost "on the rail", when Gunter Wand conducted Bruckner 8. This frail old man (or so it seemed) was a miracle. He conducted Schubert's 8th in the first half, and Bruckner 8 in the second, all without a score. It was one of the most memorable prom concerts I have ever been to (and I've been to quite a few since my first in 1957). It's difficult to describe the overall effect of Bruckner's eighth symphony, except to say that it is simply one of the most overwhelming experiences you can ever hope for. Never mind Brahms as the "successor" to Beethoven - it is Bruckner, I think, who was the real heir. Truly this man, whose music I didn't even come near to appreciating until I was well into my 50s, was a towering genius, and thank God for him.
You just can't imagine how someone can be tinkering with 4 or 5 major works whilst creating this leviathan of a work. Bruckner in his ninth symphony reaches further into the cosmos than anything else he or any other composer wrote up to that time.
I was lucky enough to have attended a Vienna Philharmonic performance of his 7th at the Wiener Musikverein Golden Hall. It was one of the most moving experiences of my life.
Not lucky to hear his music in hall. But I just re-discovered him and so grateful that we have him. He is one of the greatest composers of all time. For me the greatest after Bach and Beethoven
I always find it sad that people almost exclusively only talk about his symphonies nr. 7, 8, 9 and 4. I think symphonies nr. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 are very underrated pieces.
The Chorale Coda of the first movement of Bruckner's 6th with its at least 30 modulations is up with the very best of Bruckner. If not the best. AND this most original of Bruckner's Symphonies has several themes which have been used in blockbuster movies. Such as Lawrence of Arabia and the Song of Bernadette .
My introduction to Bruckner was thanks to his 4th symphony, which I still consider an ideal introduction to his work, I love dramatic and epic music that makes my imagination soar as if I were listening to the dramatic score of a movie, Bruckner is one of my composers favorites along with Beethoven, Wagner, R. Strauss and Mahler, his music is full of majesty and solemnity, his devotion to God can only be comparable to Bach's, maybe I'm not the most religious person but his choral works really fill my soul, I'm glad you talked about his masses, motets, Te Deum and the Ave Maria, I consider them to be great and ideal for starters if they're not prepared for the symphonies. That image 12:14, I remember there was a Bach's Tocatta and Fugue in d minor video with that image, I remember it had more than 40 or 50 millions views. 1:09 Brahms about Bruckner: he's a composer of symphonic boa constrictors. That comment made my day😆😆😆
What a great eye opener on Bruckner’s music. After listening this video twice, my persecution on his music have changed for the best. Thanks again from Mexico City for your great pedagogic work through this channel. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you for this great video on Bruckner. I first came across Bruckner's symphony no.8 (Haas version) before discovering his other symphonies (particularly no.9, no.7 and no.4) in my high school years. The transcendence and majesticness of his music have left me amazed to this day. Even for a high school kid, no.8 hit really hard with the dramatic first movement, not least with the build-up towards the outpour in the end. The introspective third movement was and remains an intense experience of music engaging with the soul in the latter's deepest recesses. The fourth movement is an odyssey all by itself through the full spectrum of human emotions. While I love other great composers and their timeless works too, listening to Bruckner's symphonies is such a profound experience that I sometimes imagine myself dying with gratification if his final symphonies were the last things I listened to on earth.
Whenever I hear the mention of Anton Bruckner's music, his Kyrie from the Mass in F starts playing in my head. Having sung that mass, I occasionally pull out my score and put on a recording just to go over it again, which is something I have only ever done for Mozart as well. Bruckner is on the level of Mozart when it comes to choral composition. That's his effect on musicians.
I think you missed the most interesting thing about his orchestrations. He wrote for orchestra as though it were an organ, using sections very much like manuals. It's the reason so many of his contemporaries found his work baffling. But if you listen to, say, his 5th symphony (and I really recommend one of the Jochum recordings if you do), the way that musical ideas bounce from winds to strings to brass -- rather than the sections working together -- is more analogous to stop-pulling on a grand cathedral organ than it is to a Beethoven symphony.
I kinda wish he mentioned how he influenced future composers, like Mahler actually saw him as his Symphonic Forerunner and Schoenberg was fascinated by Bruckners use of harmony. Not to mention, Sibelius’s orchestration in his works are heavily influenced by the orchestration in Bruckner’s Works. Apparently, any music that uses synthesizers can be traced back to Anton Bruckner. Fun Fact: The famous Bass notes of Seven Nation Army is strickinly similar the opening notes of the first movement in Bruckner Symphony No. 5
First came to Bruckner in the 60s when my father discovered the music. The essential thing about Bruckner is you have to sit down and listen; this is definitely NOT back ground stuff whilst you're doing something else. If you're OK with this, then prepare to hear Cathedrals of Sound !!
My deep gratitude and appreciation of 'Inside the Score' for excellence of production and great service to humanity through music appreciation. Thank you.
One of my top 5 composers, and absolute number 1 symphonist, even above Beethoven, Brahms, and Shostakovich (the 3 that follow him in my ranking). Thanks, fantastic video!!
When I was college, I was part of our Folk Choir. We had to perform 'Os Justi' at the Cork International Festival as a set piece. We fell in love with it. We performed it the following year in the Chapel at St Florian during our Austria-Germany tour. Afterwards a monk conducted us on a tour of the crypt, including seeing his sarcophagus. We then had a about a five hour coach journey. Even though we were a group of about 50 young people almost no-one spoke. The emotional impact of singing in his chapel was immense.
Beethoven's ninth symphony was studied like a Bible by Bruckner, and the impact is felt in the opening bars of Bruckner's 3rd, with the tremelo strings and falling fifths and ocatves. Just like the opening of the beethoven 9, The connection is made yet again in the opening moments of Bruckners own ninth.. not to mention both the 3rd and 9th are in the same key of d minor. It was the third symphony that grabbed my attention and after years of listening 🎶 moved on to have the complete set from 1 to 9 and 0 and 00. Schuberts influence is felt in the earliest works..
I don't have any education in music, but Beethoven 9th is something unique for me. Also , I just found Bruckner , and I can definitely tell you that his symphonies is the greatest of all composers who came after Beethoven. He is for future generations. His music is beyond this era. So sublime. ,..
Always torturing the violins! I hurt for two days after a performance of his Symphony #1. So much tremolo! His symphonies are good aerobic workouts in addition to their monumental greatness. Such magnificent music! “Archaeological expedition” - Barenboim’s commentary evades the towering faith in God that informs this music.
I have never listened to Bruckner - those works were intimidating to me... and just as Saint Saens 3rd and Rimsky Korsakov's Scheherazade, your videos and explanations are the trigger for me to try new pieces 😊 I love the way you explain and vulgarize the intricacies of music ! Thank you so much for your work ❤
In this case, as a long time listener to this music (it is the first music I consciously remember as an infant), I have to say that one has to be careful not to emphasize on the wrong things. The script of this video tries too hard to sell Bruckner for his grandiosity and epicness. But I can tell you from my first experiences with this music as a child, that if you just listen for the next epic moment, you will be bored to tears, because there are a lot of "dead spots" in between the epicness. The real beauty is the voyage, how he builds tension only to abruptly stop, how he weaves countermelodies into his themes that make his music interesting to listen even after 100 times. His music is so much more than just the next grand brass laden climax.
Mentioning two of my favorite pieces there, and they are favorites for mostly the same reason, the incredible orchestration. In the second movement of the symphony, you have the melody played by clarinet and trombone, an octave apart. What other piece has that? To say nothing of the string counter-melody and sustained organ chords beneath it. I can listen to that piece over and over (and have heard it live twice) each time enjoying the intricate texture. Same thing with Scheherazade (which will piece on my channel, joining Saint-Saens' 3rd). There's this basic theme that's woven throughout the entire piece, and even though its repeated so many times, it never gets boring, because it's presented in so many different ways.
I've started with the 4th and... it's definitely a lot "brassier" than other composers 😁 I don't have the ability to analyze as you two do (I don't have the training or knowledge ;) but I found his 4th rather enjoyable on the long run. It brings me the same kind of reactions as Mahler's 1st and 5th I'd say 🤔 (My favorite symphony being Mahler's 2nd, which I discovered thanks to this channel a few years ago) I'll try the 8th next time :) (Altough I understand that there are versions to be aware of, I should try other versions of the 4th also)
@@sylvaintaif8128 That's certainly not a problem. I don't have any particular training either. I went to college for industrial engineering, not music, but I've always been interested in music and have done a fair bit of singing. The rest I've just picked up from reading here and there, and making my videos helps to see just how pieces are put to together. Actually put together videos on all of Mahler's symphonies, if you'd care to poke around my own channel. Working on Bruckner also, just released a video of the 7th.
My first exposure to the 3rd symphony left an impact on me that required exploring each symphony they are all excellent..if I have a least favorite it would be the 2nd..but after listening to it recently it is certainly a masterpiece
Thanks for this video. 10:15 ' unparalleled tension and cathartic release of emotion'. I think this sums up Bruckner's genius in just a few words. I wish every Bruckner-soul a splendid 2024 (Bruckner-year)!
Bruckner's symphonies 7, 8, 9 are really great. The 9th symphony Adagio is from another world. In fact it is in Adagio from his symphonies that we find his best.
Bruckner appreciation, you love to see it. Also, I live like 5 minutes away from Ansfelden and Linz, so seeing m beloved small home get some love here was so nice to see.
Bruckner was a 100% dedicated to the concept of purity. What a legend. Also an honorable mention to the finale of his 5th symphony, I missed it in the comment section.
4,5,6 rapididly became my favourite symphonies, I don't even want to spoiler myself the ""sequels"" already because I want to keep them for a very special occasion since I hardly figure out how magnificent they could be. I've also made a very brief introduction video about him, although not of this quality!
"I don't even want to spoiler myself the ""sequels"", heyyyy I know what you did there, but the sequels of Bruckner are actually great, unlike others, cough cough Disney cough.
Love that you did one on Bruckner! Got me to subscribe! It seems his music becomes more important to me with each passing year. Wish you could have talked about his influence on Mahler, whom I also love. Just happy that this might give more people a chance to listen to Bruckner! 😊 I personally recommend- in no order- his 4th, 6th, and 7th symphonies to start with. His fifth is difficult, and his eighth, which might be his best, is a tough work to wrap your head around.
Perhaps the greatest interpreter of Bruckner's music was the Romanian conductor Sergiu Celibidache (1912-1986). I attended a performance of his 7th in Madrid, in late October 1989, less than two weeks before getting married. During the ceremony, while the officiating judge spoke to me, I had passages of that symphony going through my head. I also attended concerts featuring his 3rd (twice), 4th and 8th. Of the 99 concerts that Celibidache conducted in Spain, I was at nine of them. His performances were unlike those of other conductors, because of the extensive and very intense rehearsals and how slow the music was played. Funny thing, the man never drove me to tears. Celibidache was strongly opposed to recordings, which he always said were not music. I have "pirate" recordings of Bruckner's 5th and 8th, 4th and 9th, and 7th. When Celibidache was no longer among us, EMI launched a box with live recordings of all Bruckner's symphonies with the Munich Philharmoniker, with the exception of the 1st and 2nd, Zero and Double Zero, which he thought were not worthy.
Celi is far from the best. His conducting is more on the alternative side of things . Quirky , unusual and occasionally frustrating. He does not represent Bruckner well.
@@HeelPower200Agreed. Most of his latter era recordings I find ponderously slow, more like rehearsal tempi for a community orchestra. Fine for those who like him. Personally, I don't.
I don't think they're too similar. Mahler has a peculiar sound (that I like), where it gets a bit "brass bandy" ocasionally. Brucker is always on the solemn side, as if you're listening to a hymn to God.
I hadn't heard of Bruckner until I joined a Latin Mass choir a few years ago. A while ago, we learned "Os Justi," and needless to say, I'm interested in exploring his music further.
I'm torn when I hear this (popular) opinion expressed. On the one hand, I think it misses the point and there's only a superficial resemblance between Bruckner and modern soundtracks. It's simply due to cinema composers reaching into a bag and pulling out some "big sounds" and harmonic progressions from the 19th century. On the other hand, I totally understand that soundtracks are a natural reference point, this is the 21st century after all. And if it's a way into Bruckner and other great composers, then that's great.
4:01 this "trio within a trio" in the 9th's Scherzo gives me the chills. The warmth of the celli / violas & horn (playing at most 2 notes per beat), with the lightness of the flutes (6 notes per beat) & oboe. It gives the impression of "floating stars" that I've never heard elsewhere in the Classical repertoire
Why listen to his music? Because he is one of my favorite composers of symphonies and church music. I too am a church organist and composer/ arranger. I use to practice for 6 hours starting in 7th grade. I love Bruckner’s symphonies especially and collect Masses. Thank you for this video.
Thanks for the video. Always a fascinating man. If you can relate this humble, mild mannered man to , as you say some of the most powerful music ever written. He's not for the faint hearted. You can't just pop on a CD of his music, like you can Mozart or Handel. It requires great sacrifice and intense listening. But, really there nothing quite like him , certainly in the 19th century...
One thing that I've read is that with Bruckner, perhaps more than any other composer, the art and the artist seem to have little relationship with one-another. When you think of Wagner, or Beethoven, or Debussy, and you learn about who they were as people, their lives and personalities, you can see that come across in their music. Not so with Bruckner. He was so unassertive, genial, with his personal foibles, you wouldn't suspect, knowing him as a person, that he would be capable of such music. Hans von Bulow called him 'half genius, half simpleton". Gustav Mahler went one step further and called him "half simpleton, half god".
Thank you so much for the upload! I’m not sure if this was prompted by my request a few videos back for this exact video, or if this is a coincidence, but thank you so much for this video! Your hard work is always a appreciated and I always learn so much from you!
A wonderful video - as I said in the comment to my video, playing the theme of the first movement of his 4. sinfony: "To listen to Bruckner is a revelation but to play this music is indescribable". While and after I had played it I felt at the top of the world and at the same time very humble.
Thank you for this video, which helps me understand Bruckner better. I’ve always had mixed feelings about his symphonies. No shortage of brass and power, but sometimes it has seemed to me he lacked the melodic genius of Brahms or Beethoven. Yet his sincere desire to glorify God with his music makes my criticism seem a bit mean-spirited. But I certainly can appreciate in his music the evident yearning for the transcendent, the divine. And this to me is inspiring.
Although none of my favorite Bruckner conductors appeared and I don't particularly like the style of presentation, this was an extremely fitting summary of what Bruckner is all about!
I like the way the 8th symphony opens with the 2nd melodic note going straight to a perfect 7th, albeit briefly. This is just one touch that foreshadows his musical prodege Mahler. Normally it's considered unharmonious but both use it to great effect & it actually adds to the beauty of the opening bars of Mahler's adagietto in symphony 5.
Incredible video! Bruckner's 5th Symphony - 1st Mov is the source which inspired the widely famous guitar riff from 'Seven Nation Army', by rock band White Stripes.
