Main content
Sorry, this episode is not currently available

Bruckner Symphony No. 2

Andrew Manze conducts the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in Bruckner and Midori plays Detlev Glanert's Beethoven-inspired Violin Concerto No. 2, 'To the Immortal Beloved'.

The ‘immortal beloved’ is the addressee of a famous unsent love letter Beethoven wrote in 1812, discovered among his papers after his death. Ever since, the letter has spawned endless speculation, books, a film and, in 2020, a violin concerto. German composer Detlev Glanert describes the concerto he wrote for Midori as a ‘musical translation’ of Beethoven’s letter. Midori says Glanert’s Violin Concerto No. 2 ('To the Immortal Beloved') is ‘incredibly beautiful, very lyrical, full of drama and tension’.

For Bruckner, well-received premieres of his symphonies were very much the exception to the rule of critical and public ridicule and rejection. Sadly, the success of the Symphony No.2’s first performance in 1873 Vienna was short-lived and it’s still rarely performed. But for those who enjoy the symphonic Bruckner template there’s much that will be happily familiar, from static block-like themes and sudden silences, to massive orchestral perorations and relentless ostinatos.

Recorded last month at the Grand Studio, NDR, Hanover and introduced by Fiona Talkington.

Detlev Glanert: Violin Concerto No. 2 ('To the Immortal Beloved')
Bruckner: Symphony No. 2 in C minor

Midori (violin)
NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra
Andrew Manze (conductor)

2 hours, 28 minutes

Music Played

  • Detlev Glanert

    Violin Concerto No. 2 "To the immortal beloved"

    Performer: Midori. Orchestra: NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Andrew Manze.
  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Allegretto in B flat major, WoO 39 (for Piano Trio)

    Ensemble: Sitkovetsky Trio.
    • Sitkovetsky Trio, Beethoven - Piano Trios, Vol. 1.
    • BIS.
    • 5.
  • Anton Bruckner

    Symphony No. 2 in C minor

    Orchestra: NDR Radio Philharmonic. Conductor: Andrew Manze.
  • Claude Debussy

    Suite bergamasque

    Performer: Jean-Efflam Bavouzet.
    • Debussy: Complete works for piano vol.3: Bavouzet.
    • Chandos.
    • 2.
  • Sergey Prokofiev

    Overture on Hebrew Themes

    Ensemble: Roeland Hendrikx Ensemble.
    • Zayt Gezunterheyt: The folk soul of the Eastern clarinet.
    • Antarctica.
    • 2.
  • Dobrinka Tabakova

    Arise Lord into Thy rest

    Choir: The Sixteen. Conductor: Harry Christophers.
    • Coro.

Broadcast

  • Mon 5 Feb 2024 19:30