For those not in the know, Andris Nelsons is a Latvian conductor and is also currently the music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Gewandhauskapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.

Luckily for all us fans of his, Nelsons and the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig continue their acclaimed Bruckner cycle with Symphony No. 6 (which Anton Bruckner himself described as his “boldest” and “most brazen”), and Symphony No. 9, which had Bruckner struggling for a total of nine years.

The symphonies are coupled with Wagner’s Preludes to “Parsifal” and “Siegfried Idyll” and were released this past May 3rd, 2019 as a 2CD set via Deutsche Grammophon.

To my mind, the Bruckner symphonies are played magnificently by the orchestra, in readings that I would describe as energetic and exciting without compromising that sense of breathing-room; which is required for Bruckner.

From start to finish these works from Nelsons and the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig are powerful takes on Bruckner and Wagner’s most stirring masterpieces, that's for sure.

The Gewandhausorchester Leipzig showcases the beauty and power of this music in spectacular fashion, and the recording quality delivers, too.

As one would expect, the very same excellence is found in the Wagner pieces - the luminously beautiful Parsifal Prelude and the truly lovely Siegfried Idyll.

Indeed, the combination of Bruckner symphonies and Wagner orchestral music in this series from DG is not only very clever marketing, but undeniably compelling and enjoyable listening.

Nelsons has successfully embarked on the journey exploring the sound world of Anton Bruckner’s iconic symphony cycle with the much acclaimed recordings of Symphony No. 3 – released in 2017, Symphony no. 4 – released in February 2018 and Symphony No. 7 – released in April 2018.

This second ambitious long-term recording project is consciously combined with the production of DG’s first complete Shostakovich cycle that Nelsons is recording with the Boston Symphony Orchestra which has already been awarded with four Grammys as well as various other awards.

Official 2CD Purchase Link

www.AndrisNelsons.com

www.Gewandhausorchester.de/en