Bruckner: Symphony No. 3 in D Minor Wab 103 (1877 Versi

With the Third Symphony, Christian Thielemann and the Vienna Philharmonic are continuing their acclaimed Bruckner cycle at Sony Classical.

Last year the Vienna Philharmonic started their first ever Bruckner symphony cycle. You have chosen Christian Thielemann, who has been closely associated with the orchestra for a long time. Her publication of the Eighth Symphony has been praised worldwide for its spacious interpretation and its outstanding sound. At the end of November 2020, they met again to record the Third Symphony in D minor together in the Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein, which was empty due to circumstances.

Anton Bruckner's Third Symphony has an eventful genesis. The first version was written in 1873 and the composer dedicated it in awe to Richard Wagner. Bruckner reworked the symphony again and again until it was performed in public for the first time in December 1877 with the Vienna Philharmonic under his direction - with a catastrophic result, the performance turned out to be a disaster, not least because of insufficient preparation.

Bruckner changed the score several times, it appeared in print in 1878, and the third version, published in 1890, then brought the desired success. Christian Thielemann, widely recognized as a Bruckner conductor by grace, and the Vienna Philharmonic play the 1877 version in the version by Leopold Nowak. It largely erases the explicit Wagner reminiscences of the first version and, in contrast to the 1890 version, creates a balance between the various movements - especially in the finale.