Credits:

Bernard Haitink, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

Description:

Although considered to be Bruckner's masterpiece of the middle period, No. 6 has not been performed as often as No. 5 and No. 7. Even records of its premiere show that a shortened version was adopted for both 1883 and 1899 (conducted by Mahler) because "it is too long and difficult for the audience to understand," and in the end, the complete version was not performed until after Bruckner's death in 1901, which was an unfortunate fate for this work. However, the entire work is full of fascinating musical ideas, and the depth of the second movement Adagio in particular is so beautiful that it foreshadows Bruckner's later works. Haitink, who knows the piece inside out, uses a slow tempo in the first movement to accentuate the "sublime," and a relatively fast tempo in the second and third movements to bring the whole work to a cohesive conclusion in the final movement, which is highlighted by the heroic fanfares. Naxos Japan