CD Review
Bruckner: Symphony No. 5, Philharmonia Orchestra / Zander
- Composer
- Bruckner
- Artist
- Philharmonia Orchestra / Zander
- Label
- Telarc
- Catalogue
- 2CD-80706
- Reviewed by
- Anne McAlister
Hearing Gunther Wand conduct the NDRSO in Bruckner’s Eighth Symphony at a 1995 Edinburgh Festival concert was, for me, a musical watershed. Before then my appreciation of Bruckner had been gained through singing his motets and masses; but this visceral concert-hall experience was on an altogether different plane. I have since gained much pleasure from listening to Bruckner’s symphonies, but never elected to study them in detail. This new recording of Bruckner’s Fifth Symphony by the Philharmonia Orchestra under Benjamin Zander was therefore a revelation, not so much for the playing (which is excellent) but for the invaluable accompanying bonus disc where Zander discusses the symphony.
Zander’s style is very approachable; after a brief digression covering basic concepts of tonality and modulation, he launches into the harmonic contradictions, chorale fragments and jagged fanfares of the symphony’s introduction, the exposition’s questioning first theme and prayerful second theme, with plentiful musical illustrations. Just when the talk threatens to become too technical, Zander gives the listener a useful outline of Bruckner’s life. His exploration of the connections between the second and third movements is fascinating. In the final movement, the majestic and profound arrival of the key of B flat major and the awesome brass chorale climax moved me almost as much in the lecture as it did in the performance proper.
Susan Tomes, in one of her recent blogs, referred to the weak and rambling nature of many “last movements”; Zander makes it abundantly clear that this is not the case here, where everything in the preceding movements points to and is fulfilled by the final movement, with its massive double fugue, its vitality and sheer originality. The discussion is personalised by touching references to Zander’s father’s experiences with the score in the WW1 trenches, and enhanced by a helpful diagram setting out the symphony’s structure in the form of a cathedral floor plan.
In performance, Zander’s reading of the symphony (recorded in Watford Coliseum) is muscular and noble, my only criticism being the recorded acoustic, which is over-dry for my taste.
A note on this page
Originally published by Anne McAlister, recovered from mmmusic's own archive and reproduced here as the critic wrote it.
Questions about this recording
What makes this Bruckner Fifth different from most recordings?
It's a two-disc release: the symphony itself, plus a full bonus disc on which Benjamin Zander talks the listener through the work's structure, harmonic language and personal significance, an approach the review found more valuable than the performance alone.
Does the reviewer rate the performance itself highly?
The review is more reserved on the performance than the talk, it calls the playing excellent but singles out the recorded acoustic (taped at Watford Colosseum) as over-dry for its taste.
What personal detail does Zander bring into the discussion?
He refers to his father's experiences with the score while serving in the WW1 trenches, and illustrates the symphony's structure with a diagram comparing it to a cathedral floor plan.
Is this recording still available to buy?
Yes, Telarc's catalogue number 2CD-80706 remains findable through classical retailers. We don't run an in-house shop, so we link out to Amazon and Discogs below.
