Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 in Eb Major 'Romantic'

"In recent years, it's been Claudio Abbado's Mahler that has attracted all the attention, but he has always been an outstanding Bruckner interpreter, too. Though he has never conducted a cycle of the symphonies, he has made Bruckner recordings sporadically through his career. This is his second version of the Fourth; the first, with the Vienna Philharmonic, appeared in 1991. But, like so many of Abbado's performances in the past five years, the radiance and transparency of this account, recorded in the Suntory Hall in Tokyo last October, lifts it on to another plane altogether. Part of that is undoubtedly down to the orchestra. No one who heard the Lucerne Festival Orchestra's debut at the Proms last month could doubt the quality of the ensemble Abbado has created from the cream of Europe's instrumentalists, or fail to marvel at the freedom he allows them within his over-arching musical ideas. It produces extraordinary results in this Bruckner symphony - perfectly paced, with every climax seeming utterly natural and unforced, and every texture as limpid as possible." (5 star review Andrew Clements The Guardian)

“Bruckner’s Fourth was crafted beautifully: an ambitious interpretation, well-structured as usual, but Rattle wanted more this time: he emotionalized the work in a breathtaking manner. There were wonderful moments of quietness and exciting, joltingly moving climaxes full of life. … Especially impressive was the fact that Rattle proved himself to be the master of permanent transition. He dissolved the disruptions typical for Bruckner’s music, developed one thought from the previous one and combined everything logically. The stumbling blocks and rough edges were removed. The string section in particular presented itself in great form, not just with lush sound but – especially in the long movement – with fascinating detail and a wide range of gentle shades.” - rbb Kulturradio reviewing the performance