A milestone in symphonic history: Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, performed by the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and conducted by Paavo Järvi. The concert took place on September 2, 2023 at the Bonn Opera House as part of the Beethovenfest Bonn.

(00:00) Coming on stage
(00:17) I. Feierlich, misterioso
(26:40) II. Scherzo. Bewegt, lebhaft; Trio. Schnell
(37:35) III. Adagio. Langsam, feierlich

It belongs in the company of a line of unfinished symphonies; works which nevertheless set historical standards for music: Symphony No. 9 in D minor, by Anton Bruckner (1824 - 1896). Bruckner is said to have dedicated his monumental ninth symphony "to the beloved God." There is no written proof of this, but the doctor who treated the seriously ill composer is said to have heard Bruckner himself utter the words. The veracity of this possible dedication is, however, the subject of critical discussion.

Bruckner had already begun composing his ninth symphony in 1887. Owing to various interruptions, work on it was to continue up until his death, in 1896. Bruckner was able to complete three movements, the fourth movement existing solely in fragmented form. This three-movement fragment of the symphony received its premiere in Munich on April 2, 1932. Prior to that, an initial performance of the three movements had already been given in 1903, but conductor Ferdinand Löwe had reworked them so much that one cannot truly speak of a Bruckner premiere.

In 1934, as part of the Bruckner Gesamtausgabe (Bruckner's Complete Edition), musicologist Alfred Orel (1889 - 1967) published for the first time not only the three completed movements of the ninth symphony, but also sequenced the fourth movement as it was known at the time.

Although unfinished, Bruckner's Ninth has to this day continued to hold great allure for musicians and musicologists alike. It's not only frequently performed, but has been 'completed' in numerous different ways. On account of its amalgam of solemn seriousness, its oblique scherzo movement, and its numerous artfully-woven quotations, Bruckner's Symphony No. 9 is considered by many to be an almost mystical work. Whichever way one views it, Bruckner stretched symphonic form to its fullest possible extent, creating new realms of sound by transcending the boundaries of tonality – cementing Bruckner's Ninth as a groundbreaking work of the modern age.

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