Is Bruckner an Orchestral Player's Nightmare?

An article in the July issue of BBC Music Magazine looks at the issue of what pieces orchestral players consider to be their dream pieces and which give them nightmares. Bruckner came up on the nightmare column twice!

First, Amy Harmon, principal bassoonist of the Philharmonia Orchestra states that "Bruckner must not have liked the bassoon section of the orchestra he was writing for. In his symphonies we play one bar about every 20 minutes and no one hears us - normally we are playing largely semibreves with around twelve horns playing right behind us. Let's just say that Bruckner doesn't really use us to our full potential. Admittedly, listening to the music when we are in the thick of it in a concert is fantastic, but during a rehearsal, I just want to take a nap!"

Then, Sarah Willis, a french horn player in the Berlin Philharmonic singles out the opening of the Bruckner Fourth. Sometimes when I am asleep and having nightmares, I dream that I have to play the beginning of the Bruckner Fourth. It is so scary as all you have is tremolo strings around you and a conductor glaring at you. With the danger of playing split notes, the horn is difficult enough as it is, and here you have the added burden of the exposure and the responsibility of starting the piece - the whole mood of the performance is up to you...