Bruckner's Ninth Symphony is one of the surest crowd-pullers in the orchestral repertory, but the reasons for this are unclear. He never finished the last movement, and nobody has made a reconstruction that has found favour. So what survives are two slow movements that both give new meaning to the notion of rambling, and a central scherzo that is almost too schematic. More than that, it is in many ways written against the orchestra, with textural details, dynamic contrasts and rhythms that are effectively impossible to achieve. Anyone looking at the score can easily sympathise with Bruckner's much-derided pupils who were so concerned to rewrite his compositions in a more user-friendly way.
But then that may be why a successful performance of this massive torso can be such an overwhelming experience. The BBC Philharmonic put everything magically in place, and Walter Weller is a conductor who can steer them confidently through the maze without ever losing control of the broader picture.
To do this he needed to allow some details to take care of themselves, which they didn't always do. But there were beautifully turned oboe and flute solos from Jennifer Galloway and Richard Davis. Also noteworthy were the trumpet playing of Patrick Addinall, whose restraint must be a major component in avoiding the bombastic, and the superbly controlled horn section. The silky string textures in the last movement were particularly unforgettable. More than that, though, Weller managed that fine balance between logic and rhapsody that must be at the centre of any sympathetic Bruckner interpretation.
Beethoven's First Piano Concerto, which opened the concert, came as near to perfection as we can hope for. John Lill recently recorded all the Beethoven concertos with Weller, and their partnership was flawless. To say that everything was relaxed and light may give the wrong impression: this performance was also teeming with struggle, as it should be. But the matching visions of conductor and pianist resulted in a marvellous range of colours. The BBC Philharmonic responded with playing that was both perfect and stunningly idiomatic.
