Anton Bruckner is regarded as one of the great symphonists of the nineteenth century. His symphonies broke new ground, the sheer size and scope of each work combining the passion of Beethoven and the orchestral weight of Wagner. He gained little public approval until the last ten years of his life, but this epic cycle is now regarded as one of the major summits of symphonic composition.

Austrian conductor Georg Tintner was born in Vienna in 1917, and entered (at 13) the Vienna State Academy, where he studied conducting with Felix Weingartner and composition with Josef Marx. He led an active career in Australia and the UK, before moving to Canada at the end of 1987 to become Music Director of Symphony Nova Scotia. In 1993 he was awarded the highly prestigious honour of the Grosse Ehrenzeichen, the Officer’s Cross of the Austrian Order of Merit, and also the Commemorative Medal for the 125th Anniversary of Canadian Confederation. He died in 1999.