Bruckner: Symphony No. 5

CML call number: CD/CLASSICAL/Bruckner
James R. Oestreich wrote in the New York Times: "Given Bruckner's tendency to revise and cut his symphonies, whether eagerly or grudgingly, on the advice of presumably well-meaning colleagues, which version of a given symphony represents his original, final or otherwise definitive wishes? … The issues are especially fraught with regard to the Third Symphony, which appeared recently on a Tudor CD, part of the latest wave of Bruckner recordings. … Another of the new recordings, Christian Thielemann's reading of the Fifth Symphony … is altogether less problematic, partly because the reputable editions of the Fifth show fewer discrepancies. As for the big pauses, fewer here [than in the Third Symphony], Mr. Thielemann approaches them head-on, lengthening them, he writes in booklet notes, 'to increase the tension.' And this … is an excellent recording, drawn from Mr. Thielemann's first concerts as music director of the Munich Philharmonic last year. This orchestra has vast experience with Bruckner from its days under Günter Wand, Sergiu Celibidache and before, and it greeted its new boss with a resplendent performance" (7/10/05).