Halle/Elder Bruckner 8 Bridgwater Hall

[Barbirollians]

Terrifically played Bruckner 8 from the Halle/Elder last night . Apparently, the first time he has conducted it . The Adagio was gorgeously and sensitively played and the Finale brought a superb sense of cumulative momentum. The only criticisms I might have is that the Halle has such an outstanding brass section nowadays they were rather overpowering at times and it felt like the first two movements Elder had not quite prepared as well as the last two especially the Scherzo but well with catching in Nottingham and Gateshead this weekend.

[Roslynmuse]

Terrifically played Bruckner 8 from the Halle/Elder last night . Apparently, the first time he has conducted it . The Adagio was gorgeously and sensitively played and the Finale brought a superb sense of cumulative momentum. The only criticisms I might have is that the Halle has such an outstanding brass section nowadays they were rather overpowering at times and it felt like the first two movements Elder had not quite prepared as well as the last two especially the Scherzo but well with catching in Nottingham and Gateshead this weekend.

I was there too and enjoyed it very much - more than I have enjoyed this piece in the past, I must say. The structure felt clearer and more inevitable than I have experienced previously. Remarkable really if it was his first performance of it! I was slightly surprised by the slow tempo of the scherzo, but Bruckner's tempo is even slower. The playing really was excellent. I was sitting side circle (right) and the balance between brass and the rest was pretty well-blended there.

It's also being broadcast on R3 next Tuesday evening - I'll be listening again.

[Barbirollians]

Will be interesting to hear it again - yes the numerous microphones made it clear it was being recorded - I was mid stalls and it sounded brass heavy at times there. Will have to try circle on my next visit to the Bridgwater .

[Roslynmuse]

Will be interesting to hear it again - yes the numerous microphones made it clear it was being recorded - I was mid stalls and it sounded brass heavy at times there. Will have to try circle on my next visit to the Bridgwater .

Yes, stalls do tend to give prominence to the brass - I was downstairs last week for Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet and it was not such a well-blended mix! (Exciting though...)

[Petrushka]

I saw James Loughran conduct the Halle Orchestra in Bruckner's 8th ŵay back in 1977 and also Arvid Jansons the following year. Be interesting to hear Elder in it too.

[Barbirollians]

Barbirolli was of course sensational in it - cue the BBC Legends performance in the Royal Festival Hall described by Richard Osborne as the boldest bravest Bruckner 8 on record.

[Vile Consort]

I was there as well - front row of the choir circle (right). The trombones and trumpets were rather prominent from there, but those seats are right in the firing line. The nine(!) horns/Wagner tubas on the other side of the platform were perfectly balanced.

I, too, was surprised at the very broad tempo of the scherzo, but I am not a fan of excessive speed and it worked. Indeed, I thought he took the entire work at a relaxed speed; the concert over-ran the advertised finish time by a good 15 minutes, though it was a few minutes late starting.

Overall I would rank it in the top ten of the many hundreds of concerts and recitals I have heard over the last 50+ years - mostly in Manchester.

A friend and I heard Skrowaczewski conduct Bruckner 8 in the Free Trade Hall. We enjoyed it so much we went to the St George's Hall, Bradford, the following night to hear it again!

[jonfan]

A must after all these plaudits! We’re being spoilt with top class Bruckner at the moment with a fantastic 9 from Scotland last week. A Barbirolli 8 is a must listen also, the Halle in the RFH London.

[smittims]

It's with some hesitation I contribute a 'minority report' , having heard it on BBC Sounds. Maybe it was more thrilling to be there.

It was very well played,,the Halle having more 'finish' than I recall in the days when I used to hear them live; and I congratulate Mark Elder for opening up all the cuts,especially in the finale. This sounded like the full Haas edition. But I didn't find the interpretation outstanding. I've often admired Elder in Elgar and Strauss, and others, and I don't know how much Bruckner he does but at times it began to plod : not a performance to convert the heathen.

Does anyone know where the tubas came from? BBC Philharmonic?

[kernelbogey]

I enjoyed the broadcast despite missing a few minutes of the beginning. The Haas edition sounded sufficiently different from what is familiar to me as to be quite striking. The brass in the coda at the end of the adagio sounded magnificent.

[silvestrione]

I did enjoy it, except feeling at times it was painfully slow. More impressive in the hall, no doubt. Lovely, that moment with the harp arpeggios in the Adagio.

[Simon B]

(...) Maybe it was more thrilling to be there.

As is often the case. In the hall, personally I found it just about the most engaging Bruckner 8 I've attended. That, though, was about sonority as much as anything. At least from where I was sat, this was unusually lush sounding Bruckner with moments that strongly evoked Vaughan Williams divisi string writing and also the transparency and layering of some of Ravel's orchestration. For this listener that cancelled out some of the dryness I associate with Bruckner. It was probably largely just a fluke of the hall's acoustics and where we were sat though.

(...) I don't know how much Bruckner he (Elder) does but at times it began to plod

My understanding was that this was the first time he'd conducted any Bruckner at all. He does like slow tempi in many things. That said, I noted this performance as 1hr23 which is exactly the same as Karajan's VPO recording. Not that it's as simple as that of course

Does anyone know where the tubas came from? BBC Philharmonic?

They were mostly members of the Hallé horn section plus one of the usual suspects on the London freelance horn circuit - with others completing the horn section.

[jonfan]

No one above who was there prepared me for the two choral pieces sung by the Halle Youth Choir. How superb were they! A nice segue from Os Justi into the symphony. Sir Mark has proved himself to be a superb Bruckner interpreter on the basis of this performance. Lots of expressive phrases from the winds in the first two movements I hadn’t heard before. The slow movement was a true Adagio full of gorgeous playing especially in the strings. A slow unfolding in order to savour every minute with the climax perfectly placed. A steady tempo finale but attention kept with the stunning playing from every department coupled with exemplary engineering.
The Haas edition is rarely used now I feel in recordings or live concerts? Robert Simpson thought it the best solution to all the problems Bruckner had from well meaning advisers. I’m inclined to agree on the basis of this performance.

[Barbirollians]

Perhaps it was the tempo that led me to be less impressed by the Scherzo.

[jonfan]

Perhaps it was the tempo that led me to be less impressed by the Scherzo.

The first two movements passed by at expected tempos to my ears with lots of expressive touches, then the listener could really enjoy and take time over the Adagio. Needed to be a tad faster in the finale would be my only caveat.
As well as the London performance from Barbirolli there’s one from 1963 with augmentation from the BBC Northern in the Free Trade Hall. Riches in abundance! !