Anton Bruckner (4 September 1824 – 11 October 1896) was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, strongly polyphonic character, and considerable length. Bruckner's compositions helped to define contemporary musical radicalism, owing to their dissonances, unprepared modulations, and roving harmonies.
Unlike other musical radicals, such as Richard Wagner or Hugo Wolf who fit the enfant terrible mould, Bruckner showed extreme humility before other musicians, Wagner in particular. This apparent dichotomy between Bruckner the man and Bruckner the composer hampers efforts to describe his life in a way that gives a straightforward context for his music.
His works, the symphonies in particular, had detractors, most notably the influential Austrian critic Eduard Hanslick, and other supporters of Johannes Brahms (and detractors of Wagner), who pointed to their large size, use of repetition, and Bruckner's propensity to revise many of his works, often with the assistance of colleagues, and his apparent indecision about which versions he preferred. On the other hand, Bruckner was greatly admired by subsequent composers, including his friend Gustav Mahler, who described him as "half simpleton, half God."
初聽布魯克納，很多人會覺得他的11部交響曲（00和0-9）好像是同一首交響曲重複了11次！哈哈……這其實是因為聽者的賞鑒力不足導致的一個誤讀，也是由於現代社會浮躁的人文環境引發的心理偏差的一種具體表現。若聽者能夠不為初次聽聞的負面感觀所動，只要繼續堅持聽下去，過不了多久，布魯克納音樂的美就會開始自動浮現出來。布魯克納的音樂到底美在何處呢？古風自己的心靈覺受顯示出：布魯克納的音樂勾畫出了整個宇宙的絕美結構，其堅如磐石般的音流似乎把天堂里的瓊樓玉宇拉到了人間。布魯克納的音樂造詣猶如約翰·塞巴斯蒂安·巴赫（Johann Sebastian Bach，1685-1750）百年後重新轉世。說來有些惆悵：西方古典音樂在巴赫的筆下登峰造極，西方的經典音樂到布魯克納基本完成後浪漫主義的最好輝煌。後浪漫主義的最後掌門人就是偉大的古斯塔夫·馬勒（Gustav Mahler，1860-1911）。馬勒之後，西方經典音樂就開始進入最後的迴光返照，從此衰落下去了。
在油管上，有一位很誠實、中肯、且相當專業的經典音樂評論家赫維茨（David Hurwitz）。他創建了互聯網上著名的經典音樂評論網站ClassicsToday.com，並一直擔任該網站的執行主編和評論員。赫維茨擁有約翰·霍普金斯大學和斯坦福大學的人文藝術碩士學位，已從事專業音樂評論工作近四十餘年。他不僅出版了十幾本關於莫扎特、馬勒、西貝柳斯、海頓、德沃夏克、勃拉姆斯、貝多芬、肖斯塔科維奇、理查·施特勞斯、伯恩斯坦、亨德爾、C·P·E·巴赫和門德爾松等作曲家的著作，而且在眾多知名學術期刊上發表過不少音樂學方面的文章。下面是赫維茨推薦的布魯克納交響曲合集: The Best and Worst Bruckner Symphony Cycles
