Bruckner on his 200th birthday

Anton Bruckner, one of the most important composers of the Romantic period, will celebrate his 200th birthday in 2024.

The award-winning John Sheppard Ensemble from Freiburg, under the artistic direction of Bernhard Schmidt, has put together a program to mark the occasion, featuring works for 4- to 8-part a cappella choir, organ and three trombones. In addition to the better-known motets such as Locus iste or Christus factus est, the program also includes rarely heard works such as the early Libera me (WAB 22) or the large-scale setting Ecce sacerdos magnus (WAB 13). The composer exploits the full range of choral timbres from simple monophony to mighty mountains of sound.

The ensemble will be accompanied on the organ by David Kiefer, the newly appointed assistant organist at Cologne Cathedral.