1. SINFONIEKONZERT

ANTON BRUCKNER
Symphony No. 5 in B flat major WAB 105

The Würzburg Philharmonic Orchestra opens the series of symphony concerts under the direction of General Music Director Mark Rohde with Anton Bruckner's monumental Symphony No. 5 - a work with which Bruckner once again proved himself to be a gifted musical architect. Revered early on as a "symphony of faith" or even "Holy Scripture", the symphony was described by Bruckner himself as his "contrapuntal masterpiece". Indeed, the work is a testimony to well thought-out, complex construction. The finale culminates in an artfully crafted, sweeping double fugue. In this symphony, Bruckner brings together everything that characterizes his work and his sound world: the mysterious beginning from a mystical source, the sacred echoes, solemn string chants and finally the triumphant chorale finale, which stretches out in a great climax and concludes the symphony with the greatest splendour. It is all the more tragic that Bruckner was never able to hear his work in the concert hall. Almost twenty years after its composition, the symphony was premiered in Graz in 1894, in an abridged version. Bruckner, who was already seriously ill, was no longer able to attend this concert.