Anton Bruckner (Ansfelden, 4 September 1824 – Vienna, 11 October 1896) was during his lifetime primarily regarded as that phenomenal organist of, among others, the Sankt Florian in Linz. He was also invited abroad to perform concerts at, among other venues, Notre Dame in Paris and the Royal Albert Hall in London. Yet, apart from some youthful works, there are few organ compositions by his hand. Fortunately, the composer Sigfrid Karg-Elert created organ arrangements of Bruckner’s symphonies and composed a Brucknerian Adagio.
In 1943, the physicist Adriaan Fokker, inspired by the 31-tone system described by Christiaan Huygens in the seventeenth century, designed a small organ with 31 tones within the octave. It allows the performer to play in different tunings. On this unique instrument, which is permanently installed in the Kleine Zaal of the Muziekgebouw, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation organises a number of concerts each year. The Dutch Fin Ere Lievonen knows the Fokker organ like no other and now brings the organ works of Bruckner the attention and tuning they deserve. During this Fokker organ concert, part of the festival dedicated to Anton Bruckner at the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, the romantic works of the famous composer Bruckner will be played in the meantone tuning of the Renaissance – a feat that is only possible on the 31-tone organ. Enhanced with additional stops from the virtual 31-tone organ, this will result in a fascinating experiment.

This concert is part of the festival Unheard Bruckner at the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ.