Bruckner: Symphony No. 2 in C minor, WAB 102 [2nd version; 1877] (with Score)

Anton Bruckner:
Symphony No. 2 in C minor, WAB 102 [2nd version] (with Score)
Composed: 1872, Revised 1877
Conductor: Eliahu Inbal
Orchestra: Frankfurt Radio Symphony (hr-Sinfonieorchester)

00:00 1. Moderato (C minor)
20:08 2. Andante: Feierlich, etwas bewegt (A-flat major)
36:36 3. Scherzo: Mäßig schnell (C minor) – Trio: Gleiches tempo (C major)
43:51 4. Finale: Mehr schnell (C minor – C major)

Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 2 in C minor, sometimes known as the "Symphony of Pauses", was completed in 1872. It was actually the fourth symphony composed by Bruckner, after the Symphony in F minor (1863), the Symphony No. 1 in C minor (1866), and the Symphony in D minor (1869).

In the fall of 1871, after having become established in Vienna, Anton Bruckner embarked on a new symphonic project, his fourth, which in less than a year would result in a completed and copied score of nearly 2000 bars. The Symphony No. 2, which was mostly written in the summer of 1872, represents a breakthrough in Bruckner's conception of the symphony. Although Bruckner had been composing sonata-form movements with three distinct themes since he began writing symphonies in 1862, in 1872 he greatly expanded the scope of their presentation and development, and established the framework, which he would use consistently in all of his subsequent symphonic work. Moreover, the Adagio of this symphony is in ABA′B′A″ Lied form followed by a coda – the framework which Bruckner would use in his subsequent symphonic work, with exception of the Sixth.

The Second Symphony is the only numbered Bruckner symphony without a dedication; Franz Liszt tacitly rejected the dedication, and Richard Wagner chose the Symphony No. 3 in D minor when offered both works. The symphony was planned to be performed in the same year by the Vienna Philharmonic under Otto Dessoff. However, the rehearsal did not lead to a performance, because Dessoff and a number of players considered it impossible to perform. Nevertheless, the symphony was premiered the following year, on 26 October 1873, by the Vienna Philharmonic with Bruckner himself on the podium.