Bruckner 8 with Lahav Shani Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest

Almost inaudibly, shy string sounds break away from the silence: Bruckner's Eighth begins as a whispered secret that is slowly revealed. Time seems to stand still as the symphony builds almost imperceptibly to an overwhelming ecstasy. This requires a conductor with a masterful command of long tension arcs. Someone like Lahav Shani, 'a full-blooded Brucknerian,' according to NRC, 'great, warm-blooded, vibrant.'