200. Anniversary of the Birth of Anton Bruckner
 

Anton Bruckner’s Gradual ‘Locus iste’ was first performed in October 1869 to celebrate the consecration of the Votivkapelle, one of the first completed segments of the neogothic New Cathedral in Linz.

According to many commentators, it was in his Third Symphony that Bruckner revealed himself as the architect of a new concept for a monumental symphony. The planned premiere of the first version from 1873 was rejected after several attempts, and the presentation of the revised version from 1877 was a disaster; the main version – the third – dates from 1890. This concert will remind us of the original version of the work, based on the manuscript that Bruckner gave to Wagner, dedicating his symphony to him. It includes quotations that were later rejected, from Tristan and Die Walküre, among others, and the second movement Adagio is more elaborate compared to the later shortened versions.

The painful experience of the tragic death of his niece, Alusia Bartoszewiczówna, was the direct impulse for Karol Szymanowski to compose a sacred work he had already thought of before. He turned to the words of the Stabat Mater, inspired and enchanted by Józef Jankowski’s translation, and created one of his finest and most deeply felt works, combining innovative elements of musical language with subtle archaisms and references to traditional music.

Piotr Maculewicz