âIt's not often you hear cries of âencoreâ after a Bruckner symphony, but I would gladly have heard this one repeated in fullâ wrote âThe Guardianâ back in 2012 when Donald Runnicles and the ±«Óătv Scottish Symphony Orchestra performed Brucknerâs colossal Eighth Symphony at the ±«Óătv Proms. And nearly a decade on, no Scottish conductor â arguably no living conductor â understands the beauty and truth of Brucknerâs symphonies better than our Conductor Emeritus. If you already know and love the Eighth, this is self-recommending. If you donât, all you really need to know is that as well as containing some of 19th-century musicâs most glorious peaks, this immense symphony also contains some of its most intimate poetry: unsurprisingly, for a work that embodies one manâs lifelong search for redemption. Here, in a truly inspired touch, Runnicles and soprano Carolyn Sampson have paired it with âCorrespondancesâ, by the late Henri Dutilleux: a ravishing meditation on the transient sweetness of life, expressed in music to pierce both heart and soul.
The concert will be recorded for future broadcast on ±«Óătv Radio 3.