Unlike so many of his symphonies, Bruckner's Te Deum was an unqualified success from the very first. The composer even referred to the piece as "the pride of my life." Though composed in draft form in 1881, the work was not in its final form until 1884. The premiere took place in Vienna on May 2, 1885 with soli, chorus and two pianos (played by Robert Erben and Josef Schalk). The first performance with the intended orchestral accompaniment took...