Anton Bruckner - 9th Symphony - N. Harnoncourt - VPO - RCA/BMG 82876 54332 2 (2003) SACD rip via PS3 to iso (3.32GB) | 24bit/88.2kH flac | 6ch (2.59GB) DR15 (+5.93dB gain) | 2ch (986MB) DR15 (+5.93dB gain) | Classical All in all, this is a very fine recording. Perhaps not the definitive Bruckner 9th, but one that will have great appeal to the Bruckner initiate. ------------------------------- SA-CD.net comments here: http://www.sa-cd.net/showtitle/1328 and here: http://www.sa-cd.net/showthread/92//y?page=first Amazon reviews: As the other reviewers note, this release is essential for anyone interested in this work, for the workshop & documentation of the currently surviving material from the final movement of the symphony. Another important aspect of the release is the use of a new "critical edition" of the initial 3 movements of Bruckner's 9th, which contains a number of very evident modifications, particularly in orchestration. All the same, it is a concert recording, &, at least in the usual CD format, balances aren't always optimal, trumpets & trombones often too forward, at the expense of the Vienna Phil's strings & (especially) glorious horn section, & timpani are somewhat reticent, especially in the 1st movement. Harnoncourt also tends to push a bit hard, lacking the natural plasticity in tempo that marks the greatest performances of the 1st 3 movements of this work. The impression is one of roaring power, building & receding throughout. Of the 4th movement sketches, Harnoncourt plays exactly what survives, except he omits the 50-odd bars of 3 coda fragments that have turned up. Just a few months ago, a recording of the 9th including a reconstruction/completion of the 4th movement, based on the same body of fragments & sketches (including the coda) & prepared by the same editors, was released on Naxos (8.555933-34). The orchestra is the New Philharmonia of Westphalia (Germany) & the conductor is Johannes Wildner. Now, finally, we can hear this work in a form tantalizingly close to the way Bruckner intended. Furthermore, unlike Harnoncourt's Vienna Phil performance, Wildner & his astonishiingly capable Westphalians present what I can only describe as a ferocious performance, with horns & timpani cutting through the fabric of the orchestra at key points, & effectively flexible tempos. It's a performance unlike any I've heard since Furtwangler's furious & terrifying recording made in Berlin during the darkest days of World War II. If you've gotten the Harnoncourt (or even if you haven't), you have to get the Wildner, too. As an aside, these recordings render superfluous the 1986 Chandos recording by Yoav Talmi & the Oslo Phil of a 4-movement version of Bruckner's 9th. That documented a brave effort by William Carragan to reconstruct a finale. Unfortunately he had barely 3/4 of the body of sketches to work with that we have now, & nothing of the coda at all. ~By Neil E. Schore The second CD has the actual performance, recorded live after the workshop. This is a new critical edition (Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs) of the the first three movements. Bruckner's vast and complex landscape is lovingly painted by Harnoncourt and the VPO. Every detail is ravishingly rendered by the superb sectional playing of the Viennese (note, for example, the luminous pizzicato exchanges starting at 2:59 in 1st mvmt). Some versions, notably Giulini/VPO/DG, have a greater sense of mystery, especially in the last movement. Maybe this is intentional on Harnoncourt's part--he seems to not interpret the great adagio as a final document. Many great recordings have treated the adagio's last peroration as Bruckner's passing over to the great other, as it were (none more so than Celibidache/Munich PO/EMI). Harnoncourt seems to suggest that there is more! ~ By lyer In his talk on the 1st disc, Harnoncourt asserts that Bruckner essentially completed the 4th Movement, except for the orchestration, & that the missing (numbered) pages of the manuscript were probably taken as curios or momentos by admirers shortly after his death. The commentary & 4th Movement excerpts are fascinating, leading to the impression that this incredible masterpiece is even more so than we had the temerity to believe. The live performance of the torso (a new critical edition by Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs) is exciting & clarifying, though I concur with the previous reviewer's comments about the Giulini performance. The sound of the CD layer is typical of RCA--very good, but a little less in-your-face than on DG. I have also listened to the SACD stereo layer, & it is practically a different animal. Instrumental groups that are somewhat de-emphasized or out of focus on the CD layer come through with stunning immediacy & precision. Unlike a number of other SACD's I own, it makes an impressive case for the new format. Unfortunately, I'm not equipped to comment on the surround sound layer. This is the most gratifying Bruckner release to come along in some time. Don't miss it, especially at such a great price! ~By kakistocracy Other reviews and buyable here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bruckner-Symphony-No-Nikolaus-Harnoncourt/dp/B0000AF1IG and here: http://www.amazon.com/Bruckner-Symphony-Documentation-Fragment-Harnoncourt/dp/B0000AF1IG Tracks: 01 Nikolaus Harnoncourt Feierlich; misterioso 24:17 02 Nikolaus Harnoncourt Scherzo. Bewegt; lebhaft - Tri 10:39 03 Nikolaus Harnoncourt Adagio. Langsam; feierlich 23:54 Time: 58:54 The allmusic review: http://www.allmusic.com/album/bruckner-symphony-no-9-with-the-documentation-of-the-finale-fragment-mw0001851764 ---------------------------------------