Happy birthday Bruckner! Comparison is often made of Austrian composer Anton Bruckner (4 September 1824 – 11 October 1896) and German composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883). Is Bruckner Wagnerian? Here are some of my observations: The meaning of Bruckners music lies in the symphonic form of purely instrumental music. Bruckners language is the magnificent and glorious sound of brass, timpani and the songs of the birds expressed so serenely and sadly by the tone of the winds. The musical note itself speaks the language of depth. However, one of the most significant meanings of Wagners music is its narrative (i.e. operas) and symbols (e.g. leitmotifs) of myth (e.g. Der Ring Des Niebelungen often called Ring). Musical leitmotifs connects the musical theme with symbolic concepts, characters and objects (e.g. love, Brunnhilde, gold). Some movements of Bruckner symphonies such as the 7ths adagio recapitulate the theme of his sacred choral work, Te Deum. Thus, some musical themes are symbolically linked to his religious beliefs. However, the core theme of his music exists in the symphonic form and note itself is the essence of Bruckners music. Symbols in Wagnerian Narrative of myth explores themes such as love, hate, death and sacrifice as a process to salvation. Wagners quest was the search for human universals by exploring the symbolism of myth via words and music. Wagners strength and perhaps his weakness lies in an attempt to integrate words, drama and music. Unlike Wagner, Bruckner rarely showed interest in literature(except the Bible), drama or political philosophy. There is a famous anecdote of Wagners Ring. After the performance of the Ring, Bruckner asked, Why did they burn Brunnhilde? It is a historic fact that Bruckner admired Wagner as almost a musical god and considered him a hero and father-like figure. Bruckners dedication of the 3rd (1873) are witness to this fact. It is worth noticing that although Wagner verbally praised Bruckners works, there are almost no records of Wagner ever listening to or performing Bruckners works. It seems as though Bruckner loved Wagners music and admired him because Wagners music was so different from Bruckners. So it is likely that Bruckner and Wagner both admired each other from a distance. Let us watch the 2nd Movement, scherzo of his 9th Symphony, performed by Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Herbert von Karajan. Source: anthja/ab.html
Posted on: Thu, 04 Sep 2014 03:00:06 +0000
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