Bruckner Symphony No 6

Sir Simon Rattle conducts a rare pairing of Bartók and Bruckner – two works separated by half a century, but each original and bold in their own way.

There’s a reason that Bartók’s Music for strings, percussion and celeste has made appearances in films like The Shining. It’s a masterpiece of atmosphere, with chilling melodies which constantly twist and cascade, and frenzied, pounding rhythms, in a unique reimagining of traditional peasant dances. The composer even specified that the strings form two orchestras, divided on the stage by the percussion – the original ‘surround sound’.

It’s paired with Bruckner’s Sixth Symphony, the most original of all composer’s symphonic works. Its contrasting moods, and overarching theme moving from darkness to light, can be haunting one moment and ecstatic the next, culminating in one of the most enigmatic symphonic conclusions of the 19th century.