Search - Anton Bruckner, Siegmund von Hausegger, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra :: Bruckner: Symphony 9

A Truly Historic Recording

10/25/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Siegmund von Hausegger may be unfamiliar to most music fans today. He did himself no favors by being a Nazi sympathizer during the war, after which he was discredited and soon died. He was, however, a very important figure in the popularization of the original scores of Bruckner's symphonies in the 1930s. Hausegger conducted one of the most significant concerts in the history of Bruckner's music when, in 1932, he performed two versions of Bruckner's 9th Symphony with the Munich Philharmonic. The first, which had been the official version for 30 years, was heavily edited and revised by Ferdinand Lowe, one of Bruckner's students in Vienna. Like many of Bruckner's students, Lowe was a Wagnerian who didn't truly understand Bruckner's symphonic conception. He thus "Wagnerized" Bruckner's 9th Symphony, making it a far less original and powerful symphonic statement than the untainted version that the master had left to a library in Vienna at his death. The second version that Hausegger performed was that original version, unveiled for performance in an edition by the musicologist, Alfred Orel. Hausegger's juxtaposition of the two versions of the 9th reputedly left no one in doubt that the original versions of Bruckner's symphonies should be performed to the complete exclusion of the spurious versions drafted by Bruckner's students. It was a momentous performance that had an enormous impact.This recording of the Bruckner 9th is thus of great significance for serious Bruckner fans. It was made in 1938, just 6 years after Hausegger's historic concert. It is one of the earliest recorded performances of the symphony. As a performance, Hausegger's view is a valid one. His speeds are often faster than those of other conductors, but his decisions in this regard usually sound like right ones, such as during the macabre march episode in the slow movement. He certainly doesn't rush the episodes that are meant to be played more slowly. The orchestral playing of the Munich Philharmonic is not up to the high standard of its counterpart in Berlin and there are a few unpleasant sounds that emerge. The sound quality of the recording itself isn't bad for its time, but there are recordings from this period that sound better. In short, this is an interesting and historically significant recording, but it's not artistically perfect and probably won't interest people who are not already familiar with this most profound of symphonies. The recordings by Karajan and Furtwangler are the ones to listen to first."