Bruckner Symphony No. 4 (1878-81) – plus alternative Allegro moderato (1878); Andante quasi Allegretto (1878); Scherzo (1874, rev 1876); Finale (1878 unabridged) London Symphony Orchestra/Simon Rattle LSO Live LSO 0875 126:37 mins (2 discs)
Bruckner has now become so popular that it is possible for the London Symphony Orchestra to publish two accounts of his Fourth Symphony, which can only be bought as a pair, with the consequent increase in price. I must say straightaway that the first disc’s worth of music contains the finest account of the Fourth Symphony I have ever heard, thanks to the extreme simplicity of the approach. With Bruckner it is tempting, with his endless rallentandos and portentous moving towards even sub-climaxes, to accelerate or slam on the brakes. Rattle has none of that (unusual for him), but presents this symphony in a way that eliminates its danger-points. The result is a triumph.
And now the rub: everyone knows that Bruckner couldn’t stop tinkering with his works, and with none more than the Fourth. The result is that there are several alternative movements, and parts of movements, with no clear indications of which to play. Rattle grasps the nettle, producing on the first disc a plausible coherent whole – though you won’t find a score to match it – and on disc two an assortment of four movements from different stages of the work’s evolution. So while the second disc is fascinating and played with just as much conviction as the first, it does not provide a musical so much as a musicological experience. None of the movements is without interest, even if there are clear failures of inspiration. So in all, particularly for the first disc, this is an imperative purchase for the Brucknerian.
Michael Tanner
