Written more or less simultaneously with the Symphony No. 7, which was a triumph, the Symphony No. 8 represented for Bruckner the culmination of his œuvre. Even so, the work was widely disparaged, to the point that Bruckner thought of committing suicide. The score underwent numerous modifications before arriving in its definitive version.

A native of the Netherlands, Jaap van Zweden is one of the most acclaimed conductors of his generation. He became music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in 2008, music director of the Hong Kong Philharmonic in 2012, and has been Music Director of the New York Philharmonic since the 2018-2019 season.