Huge applause!

The Ansfeld organ improviser and jazz

Almost 70 musicians, including the children's choir, performed the four-part commissioned work in Rohrbach(Bild: Constantin Handl)

It is well known that Anton Bruckner was active in the lower Mühlviertel, more precisely in Windhaag. Last weekend he was also a guest in the upper Mühlviertel. The Linz composer and jazz musician Charly Schmid translated the master's themes into the modern age and thrilled the audience over three consecutive days.

Based on symphonies, masses and choral works by the Ansfelden master, the LMS Rohrbach explored the topicality and timelessness of Bruckner's themes. These served composer and Linz jazz icon Charly Schmid as inspiration and starting point for a four-movement work that uses the means of contemporary music-making to reflectively transfer his melodies into the present.

Three stages
With an orchestra of up to 70 musicians made up of music teachers and pupils from the Rohrbach-Schlägl-Haslach music school association under the direction of director Harald Müller, Charly Schmid brought selected Bruckner themes to three different stages in the Rohrbach district.

Composer Charly Schmid also performed a solo on the bass clarinet(Bild: Darius Handl)

Jazz pianist and piano teacher Hubert Gredler delivered a brilliant solo on the electric piano(Bild: Darius Handl)

Both the stage and the auditorium were completely full.(Bild: Darius Handl)

An electric guitar solo by Lukas Schmidlehner from the Schlägl music school also enriched the 45-minute work.(Bild: Darius Handl)

Composer gives insights
"I first analyzed some works and tried to understand them. Then I used these original chord sequences and laid melodies over them, and pursued the whole thing with my own musical means," Schmid explains his work. "For me, it was appealing and very exciting to approach Bruckner in this way. Incidentally, Bruckner was first known as a virtuoso organ improviser before he made a name for himself worldwide as a composer. His chord progressions also work excellently in jazz. It wouldn't be too far-fetched to say: 'Bruckner is jazz!

Ridiculed by contemporaries
Part one had less to do with Bruckner's works than with his biography. Based on a "Gstanzl", it dealt with the time when he was rather ridiculed by his Viennese colleagues and not taken seriously as a "provincial". The second part was slow in the manner of a symphony and inspired by an excerpt from Bruckner's "Nullter", his first symphony, which was later canceled after fierce criticism from his contemporaries.

World-famous themes
In the third part, connoisseurs heard Bruckner's Mass in D minor, and the sacred work was also quoted in terms of sound. This occidental-sacred part finally led to a rhythm mass in the style of soul or gospel. The finale was based on the famous horn theme from the first movement of the fourth symphony, also known as the "Romantic", before finally leading into a "Dance Felden Disco Groove".

Evergreens at the end
The second half of the evening, which was superbly hosted by Martina Müller, was rounded off with big band classics and evergreens such as New York New York, Georgia, Spinning Wheel and Save The Last Dance For Me. Here, singer and piano teacher Klemens Kudla shone at the microphone.