BBC Music Magazine
March 2019
Orchestral Choice

Bamberger Symphoniker, Jakub Hrusa

Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98
Dvorak: Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 'From the New World'

This long-term edition of symphonies by Johannes Brahms and Antonín Dvořák, performed by the Bamberger Symphoniker led by their chief conductor Jakub Hrůša, springs from a wish to stimulate a deliberate, interiorized and unbiased listening experience. Associating these two Romantic geniuses, bound by a unique friendship, in one edition enables a new viewpoint. It immediately becomes apparent that the two last symphonies of Brahms and Dvořák have more than their key in common - yet this also illuminates their differences. The encounter with these masterpieces becomes a sensual and intellectual adventure, sparking enthusiasm, amazement and joy. Both the Bamberger Symphoniker’s concert programmes and their discography have long been marked by openness and a readiness to take risks, as displayed for example in their pioneering Mahler cycle, or the complete recordings of Schubert symphonies alongside works by Berio, Rihm, Widmann and other contemporary composers. This production of the last symphonies by Brahms and Dvořák is not a confrontation, but places them in a new light - and continues the Bamberger Symphoniker and Jakub Hrůša’s dedicated championship of this repertoire.

"Hearing these two E minor symphonies side by side proved far more stimulating than I anticipated. The orchestral playing is absolutely first-class and Hrůša’s conception of the music is totally compelling. This outstandingly recorded first instalment in a projected cycle pairing all four of Brahms’s symphonies with the last four by Dvořák has set the bar really high." - BBC Music Magazine, March 2019.