The roots of Bruckner scholarship at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW) stretch back several decades: as early as 1975, the copious volume “Bruckner-Studien” (Bruckner Studies) was published as part of the series Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Musikforschung (Publications of the Commission for Music Research). In 1978, with the foundation of the Anton Bruckner Institute Linz (ABIL) by the ÖAW and the Linzer Veranstaltungsgesellschaft (Linz Event Society), the former Commission for Music Research, alongside Linz, became one of the two research groups of the institute, which operated as an association. Following the OeAW’s withdrawal from ABIL in 2006, a dedicated Bruckner research department was established under the direction of Erich Wolfgang Partsch (†). This department has since focused on fundamental research, documentation (including an electronic bibliography listing entries published since 2000), publications, and the occasional organization of workshops and conferences. A specialized library and a large archive provide essential resources for this work.

In recent years, increasing emphasis has been placed on the field of digital humanities. Based on the research platform Bruckner online—developed by Robert Klugseder and offering access to all of Bruckner’s autographs and relevant contemporary copies, along with philological commentary, a comprehensive bibliography, and much more—several complementary projects have been launched. Particularly noteworthy among them is the new edition of the Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckner (WAB; Anton Bruckner Work Catalog), overseen by Klugseder, and the Anton Bruckner Lexikon online (ABLO). The ABLO expands and updates the 1996 reference work Anton Bruckner. Ein Handbuch (Anton Bruckner: A Handbook), edited by Uwe Harten. Compiled with the help of numerous international collaborators, the lexicon includes entries on persons, places, concepts, and all of Bruckner’s works, featuring over 1,000 entries, complete with illustrations and musical examples. In the section “Rezeption” (Reception), thanks to contributions from international collaborators, geographically diverse entries have been published for the first time. Christian K. Fastl took over project leadership in 2016, sharing editorial responsibilities with Andrea Harrandt, while the Research Unit DH Research&Infrastructure at the ACDH, headed by Daniel Schopper, has handled technical implementation from the project’s inception.

Additional externally funded projects have explored various aspects of Bruckner's work, such as his composition studies in the Kitzler-Studienbuch or Kitzler Study Book (Digital Music Analysis Using Techniques of the Music Encoding Initiative, led by Klugseder) and the Viennese Copyists of Anton Bruckner’s Works under the direction of Clemens Gubsch.

In 2009, the book series Wiener Bruckner-Studien (Viennese Bruckner Studies) was inaugurated with the publication of the volume “Anton Bruckners Wiener Jahre” (Anton Bruckner’s Viennese Years). As of 2023, ten volumes have been published, covering a broad range of topics with contributions from international Bruckner scholars. This series also includes the cataloging of the extensive archival holdings of St. Florian Abbey, completed in three volumes by Elisabeth Maier and Renate Grasberger. In 2024, Maier published the monograph Anton Bruckner. Blicke auf ein Leben (Anton Bruckner: Views on a Life). Current works-in-progress include a study of Bruckner’s tenure as professor at the Conservatory of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde (Society of Friends of Music) in Vienna and the fourth volume of the Bruckner Iconography.

To commemorate Bruckner’s 2024 anniversary, the international symposium 200 Jahre Bruckner – 100 Jahre Bruckner-Forschung (200 Years of Bruckner – 100 Years of Bruckner Research) was held in collaboration with the Music Collection of the Austrian National Library (conference proceedings are in preparation), and the new Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckner was released. Additionally, to celebrate the composer’s 200th birthday, the ÖAW organized a music and culinary festival in the Arkadenhof of the Academy Campus on September 7, 2024.