Bruckner's 5th Symphony was a confrontation with the past for its composer – both from a personal, biographical angle and as a departure from his usual composition technique. Bruckner's Fifth proved to be the departure point for new, unconventional strategies in his symphonic composing style. This symphony is acknowledged as his "contrapuntal masterpiece". Christian Thielemann once again proves himself to be a "magician of the (Bruckner) sound" (Kurier): from the softly sounding introduction that slowly emerges as if from celestial spheres, the Fifth was a special musical delight which raised high hopes that were not disappointed; on the contrary, they were exceeded. "The end of the third movement took one's breath away." (Der Neue Merker). Following on from his recordings of the 7th and 8th, Christian Thielemann has added to his cycle of Bruckner symphonies with this Fifth with the Staatskapelle Dresden.