Thread: Went to Avery Fisher Hall last night to hear Bruckner 7th by the Cleveland Orchestra

The program started off with John Adams violin concerto with soloist Leila Josefowicz and Wesler-Most as conductor. John Adams himself made an appearance at the end which was delightful.

The Bruckner 7th was played superbly. I thought Simon Rattle's 7th was the best, but Wesler-Most brought out certain nuances that Rattle didn't bring out on his EMI recording. The applause was resounding. I have to say that a good performance of Bruckner 7th crushes Brahms, and I now see why Hanslick and Von Bulow hated Bruckner. Its one thing for Richard Wagner to dominate Opera, thereby leaving the Symphony to the Brahms group, but Bruckner's foray into the Symphony with Wagner's support was akin to Hannibal entering Italy.

Excellent venue!...hope you had a great time!

Originally Posted by ScipioAfricanus

The program started off with John Adams violin concerto with soloist Leila Josefowicz and Wesler-Most as conductor. John Adams himself made an appearance at the end which was delightful.

The Bruckner 7th was played superbly...

Sounds superb. Bruckner's 7th is my favourite symphony by him, apart from his 6th. It's good that orchestras are now "pairing" the older "classics" with newer works. Also, always good to see a living composer being there & receiving the applause after a concert, reminds me that not all composers are currently "decomposing!"

I have to say that a good performance of Bruckner 7th crushes Brahms...

I know what you mean, I often prefer to listen to Brahms' concertos rather than his symphonies for that kind of reason (they can be more gratifying for some listeners than his symphonies), but it really depends on my mood at the time. Despite their avowed differences, I also find some commonalities between these two leviathans of their age, eg. Brahms' concertos and Bruckner's symphonies were all considered quite long and complex for their time.

...and I now see why Hanslick and Von Bulow hated Bruckner...

I don't know much about Von Bulow, but I know Hanslick hated a good number of major composers during his time, apart from "the obvious suspects." Maybe it was a matter of sour grapes or 'turf wars,' as you suggest, but at the end of the day I find that people like Hanslick were more ideologues than genuine critics. They saw music as a battle ground, as a contest, which I think is a severe distortion of what a real critic should do - which is not only give their opinion but also balance this with some forms of more "objective" reasoning as to say how a particular work fits in to the "big picture" of it's time, regardless of whether they happen to like it or not. In other words, they should not only be critics, but also educators communicating what is of value in a piece of music (even if they see it as not offering that much). Anyone who is not a critic can easily give a primitive "gut reaction," but these guys should be - & act - as professionals & experts in their field. It's also kind of like the old "glass half empty or half full" paradigm - sometimes it's easier & more expedient to be negative rather than positive...

Originally Posted by ScipioAfricanus

The program started off with John Adams violin concerto with soloist Leila Josefowicz and Wesler-Most as conductor. John Adams himself made an appearance at the end which was delightful.

The Bruckner 7th was played superbly. I thought Simon Rattle's 7th was the best, but Wesler-Most brought out certain nuances that Rattle didn't bring out on his EMI recording. The applause was resounding. I have to say that a good performance of Bruckner 7th crushes Brahms, and I now see why Hanslick and Von Bulow hated Bruckner. Its one thing for Richard Wagner to dominate Opera, thereby leaving the Symphony to the Brahms group, but Bruckner's foray into the Symphony with Wagner's support was akin to Hannibal entering Italy.

Wow! You are the first person - whom I have read - to write that. Can we be new best friends? ;-)