Solo Viola in Bruckner 4

Just listening to a tape of the broadcast on BBC R3 made early this morning of Klemperer conducting Bruckner 4 with the Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1947.

The viola theme in the second movement is given by a solo instrument not the whole section. I think I like it but suspect it's a 'Klemperer special'.

Is/Was there any precedent for this?

No precedent as far as I am aware, but Klemperer did the same thing on his first commercial recording of the work for Vox in 1951. In his EMI record, he had just the final viola phrase played solo.

Mark K.

Klemperer's use of the viola solo is certainly an odd touch, and I have no idea why he does it. Nevertheless, the 1947 performance is totally first rate, I think much better than the Vox recording, although it's along the same interpretive lines (very fast but, at least to my ears, with none of the mystery lost). Although Klemperer uses the Haas edition (he later switched to Nowak once it was published in 1955), his tempi are not much different from the metronome markings in the first published edition, which are much faster throughout than what we have been hearing in recent decades. (First movement begins with a half note = 72 if memory serves.) Anyone who thinks that Klemperer is a synonym for slow ought to hear it. It is currently available in high quality streaming audio in the Andante music room.

I have no connection to Andante other than being a satisfied subscriber to their web-based service.