Recomposition of Anton Bruckner's 7th Symphony in E major | A work commissioned by the International Brucknerfest Linz to mark the 200th anniversary of Bruckner's birth
In #freebruckner, the ensemble, in cooperation with the International Brucknerfest Linz, seeks to explore Anton Bruckner's 7th Symphony. Today, Bruckner is primarily known as a composer of great symphonies in the concert repertoire, but during his lifetime he was also famous for his improvisation on the organ. Stegreif, whose passion is the combination of symphonic music and improvisation, will combine these two elements typical of Bruckner. Stegreif will take the famous Trauermusik of the central Adagio as an opportunity to lead through psychological phases of grief in the recomposition and thus constructively deal with the many social experiences of loss of our time. The Adagio becomes a composed work of mourning for an (im)possible future.
The sound of the symphonic orchestra is expanded to include saxophone, drumset, electric guitar and the use of their own voices. References to vocal music, the chamber music instrumentation and Bruckner's relationship to improvisation provide interesting musical points of reference for the recomposition, which contains roughly equal parts original passages from Bruckner's composition, cross-genre arrangements and improvisations.
Freely moving in the concert hall, without music sheets and without a conductor, a performance is created that breaks down the boundaries between composition and improvisation, between performers and visitors, and allows the great composer's esteemed legacy to be heard in a new light.
Photo: Moritz Esyot