Anton Bruckner - Symphony No. 7 (Andrew Manze)

Information

Composer: Anton Bruckner

• Symphony No. 7 in E Major (Live, Hannover, 2020)

NDR Radiophilharmonie

Andrew Manze, conductor

Date: 2026

Label: NDR Radiophilharmonie

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Anton Bruckner occupies a unique position in the 19th-century pantheon, dedicating himself to absolute symphonic music despite the prevailing era of Romantically inspired program music. Ironically, it was a revelatory 1863 performance of Richard Wagner's Tannhäuser that liberated Bruckner from years of rigid theoretical study under Simon Sechter and Otto Kitzler. Harnessing Wagner's harmonic innovations and orchestral scope without adopting his theatricality, Bruckner quickly developed his own monumental style. His Symphony No. 7 serves as a poignant memorial to Wagner, utilizing Wagner tubas in its profound Adagio and concluding with a thematic structural unity that cements Bruckner's symphonic legacy.

Andrew Manze (b. 1965) is acclaimed as one of today’s most inspiring conductors, known for his scholarship, energy, and warmth. Chief Conductor of the NDR Radiophilharmonie since 2014 (contract extended to 2023), he also became Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in 2018/19, with whom he recorded Vaughan Williams’s complete symphonies. His award-winning Pentatone recordings with the NDR focus on Mendelssohn and Mozart. In demand worldwide, he has conducted leading orchestras including the LA Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Concertgebouw, and Bavarian Radio Symphony. Formerly Artistic Director of the English Concert, he first gained prominence as a baroque violinist and remains active as a teacher, editor, and broadcaster.