Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 (SACD)

In his deeply personal and scholarly music notes, Maestro Honeck gives great insight into the history and the musical structure of Bruckner's final composition, and describes how he conducts and interprets this masterwork. To conclude his notes he quotes Bruckner biographer Max Auer: "The Ninth Symphony surpasses all its predecessors in sublimity and consecration. If Arthur Schopenhauer describes the arts as an image of an idea, but music as an idea in itself, then Bruckner's swan song, his Ninth Symphony, appears to us as the idea of the beyond, of the deity itself. Already from the very beginning of the richly structured first movement, one feels surrounded by the twilight light of a Gothic cathedral - a mood that releases us from the heaviness and fatigue of matter and leads us to the afterlife."

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, known for its artistic excellence for more than 125 years, is credited with a rich history of the world's finest conductors and musicians, and is deeply committed to Pittsburgh and its region. Since 2008, the Pittsburgh Symphony has been led by its worldwide acclaimed Music Director Manfred Honeck. Past music directors have included many of the greats, including Fritz Reiner, William Steinberg, André Previn, Lorin Maazel and Mariss Jansons. The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has always been at the forefront of championing new works, including recent commissions by Mason Bates, Stacy Garrop, Jonathan Leshnoff, James MacMillan, Wynton Marsalis, Jessie Montgomery and Julia Wolfe. The Pittsburgh Symphony has a long and illustrious history in the areas of recordings and live radio broadcasts dating back to the 1930s. It has toured frequently both domestically and overseas since 1900 - including more than 40 international tours. The Pittsburgh Symphony continues to be critically acclaimed as one of the world's greatest orchestras.

Musicians:
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Manfred Honeck - Music Director