Symphony No 3

'Indispensable to the serious Brucknerite, and for more than a few who hear it, it is going to be the version of choice' (Schwann Inside)

'I deem this as good a Bruckner Third (in any version) as I have heard. It has been a pleasure to review, and now to recommend' (Fanfare)

'Beautiful playing'(Hi Fi News)

'Vänskä conducts Bruckner with power and understanding and draws rich and finely nuanced playing'(Gramophone)

'A searing, electrically charged performance. Quite simply, it is stunning... One of the most exciting Bruckner performances on disc - and certainly the best Third I have ever heard. This [CD) is one that you simply have to have. Recommended with all the breath in my lungs' (Fanfare)

'Superbly recorded…this is an account to recommend' (International Record Review)

'The BBCSSO play splendidly for Osmo Vänskä, whose feeling for this composer seems as profound as his much-acclaimed Sibelius'(Classic FM Magazine)

At least eight versions of this symphony are known to exist. This recording is of the 1877 third (first published) version, with the inclusion of an 1876 version of its Adagio containing much new material, which was discovered pasted over in the orchestral parts used in the first performance. Bruckner called No 3 his 'Wagner Symphony' and it contains many quotations from the Wagner operas including the famous cascading strings from the Tannhäuser Overture.