Symphony No.

9 (Beethoven)

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Symphony No. 9

by Ludwig van Beethoven

A page (leaf 12 recto) from Beethoven's manuscript

Key D minor

Opus 125

Period Classical

Genre Choral symphony

Text Friedrich Schiller's "Ode to Joy"

Language German

Composed 1822–1824

Duration about 70 minutes

Movements Four

Scoring Orchestra with SATB chorus and soloists

Premiere

Date May 7, 1824 (1824-05-07)

Location Theater am Kärntnertor, Vienna

Conductor Michael Umlauf and Ludwig van Beethoven

Kärntnertor house orchestra, Gesellschaft

der Musikfreunde with soloists: Henriette
Performers Sontag (soprano), Caroline Unger (alto),
Anton Haizinger (tenor), and Joseph Seipelt
(bass)

The Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, also known as Beethoven's 9th, is the final complete
symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, composed between 1822 and 1824. It was first performed in
Vienna on 7 May 1824. One of the best-known works in common practice music,[1] it is regarded by
many critics and musicologists as one of Beethoven's greatest works and one of the supreme
achievements in the history of western music.[1][2] In the 2010s, it stands as one of the most performed
symphonies in the world.[3][4]

The symphony was the first example of a major composer using voices in a symphony[5] (thus making it
a choral symphony). The words are sung during the final (4th) movement of the symphony by four vocal
soloists and a chorus. They were taken from the "Ode to Joy", a poem written by Friedrich Schiller in
1785 and revised in 1803, with text additions made by Beethoven.

In 2001, Beethoven's original, hand-written manuscript of the score, held by the Berlin State Library, was
added to the United Nations Memory of the World Programme Heritage list, becoming the first musical
score so designated.[6]

Contents

1 History

1.1 Composition

1.2 Premiere

1.3 Editions

2 Instrumentation

3 Form

3.1 I. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso

3.2 II. Molto vivace

3.3 III. Adagio molto e cantabile

3.4 IV. Finale

3.4.1 Text of the fourth movement

4 Reception
5 Performance challenges

5.1 Metronome markings

5.2 Re-orchestrations and alterations

5.2.1 2nd bassoon doubling basses in the finale

6 Notable performances and recordings

7 Influence

7.1 Use as (national) anthem

7.2 Use as a hymn melody

7.3 Year-end tradition

8 See also

9 References

10 Bibliography

11 External links

History[edit]

Portrait of Ludwig van Beethoven in 1820. Beethoven was almost totally deaf when he composed his
Ninth Symphony.

Composition[edit]

The Philharmonic Society of London originally commissioned the symphony in 1817.[7] The main
composition work was done between autumn 1822 and the completion of the autograph in February
1824.[8] The symphony emerged from other pieces by Beethoven that, while completed works in their
own right, are also in some sense "sketches" (rough outlines) for the future symphony. The Choral
Fantasy Opus. 80 (1808), basically a piano concerto movement, brings in a choir and vocal soloists near
the end for the climax. The vocal forces sing a theme first played instrumentally, and this theme is
reminiscent of the corresponding theme in the Ninth Symphony (for a detailed comparison, see Choral
Fantasy).

Going further back, an earlier version of the Choral Fantasy theme is found in the song "Gegenliebe"
(Returned Love) for piano and high voice, which dates from before 1795.[9] According to Robert W.
Gutman, Mozart's K. 222 Offertory in D minor, "Misericordias Domini", written in 1775, contains a
melody that foreshadows "Ode to Joy".[10]

Premiere[edit]

Although his major works had primarily been premiered in Vienna, Beethoven was keen to have his
latest composition performed in Berlin as soon as possible after finishing it, as he thought that musical
taste in Vienna had become dominated by Italian composers such as Rossini.[11] When his friends and
financiers heard this, they urged him to premiere the symphony in Vienna in the form of a petition
signed by a number of prominent Viennese music patrons and performers.[11]

The Theater am Kärntnertor in 1830

Beethoven was flattered by the adoration of Vienna, so the Ninth Symphony was premiered on 7 May
1824 in the Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna along with the overture The Consecration of the House
(Die Weihe des Hauses) and three parts of the Missa solemnis (the Kyrie, Credo, and Agnus Dei). This
was the composer's first onstage appearance in 12 years; the hall was packed with an eager audience
and a number of musicians.[12]

The premiere of Symphony No. 9 involved the largest orchestra ever assembled by Beethoven[12] and
required the combined efforts of the Kärntnertor house orchestra, the Vienna Music Society
(Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde), and a select group of capable amateurs. While no complete list of
premiere performers exists, many of Vienna's most elite performers are known to have participated.[13]

The soprano and alto parts were sung by two famous young singers: Henriette Sontag and Caroline
Unger. German soprano Henriette Sontag was 18 years old when Beethoven personally recruited her to
perform in the premiere of the Ninth.[14][15] Also personally recruited by Beethoven, 20-year-old
contralto Caroline Unger, a native of Vienna, had gained critical praise in 1821 appearing in Rossini's
Tancredi. After performing in Beethoven's 1824 premiere, Unger then found fame in Italy and Paris.
Italian composers Donizetti and Bellini were known to have written roles specifically for her voice.[16]
Anton Haizinger and Joseph Seipelt sang the tenor and bass parts, respectively.
Caroline Unger, who sang the contralto part at the first performance and is credited with turning
Beethoven to face the applauding audience.

Although the performance was officially directed by Michael Umlauf, the theatre's Kapellmeister,
Beethoven shared the stage with him. However, two years earlier, Umlauf had watched as the
composer's attempt to conduct a dress rehearsal of his opera Fidelio ended in disaster. So this time, he
instructed the singers and musicians to ignore the almost totally deaf Beethoven. At the beginning of
every part, Beethoven, who sat by the stage, gave the tempos. He was turning the pages of his score and
beating time for an orchestra he could not hear.

There are a number of anecdotes about the premiere of the Ninth. Based on the testimony of the
participants, there are suggestions that it was underrehearsed (there were only two full rehearsals) and
rather scrappy in execution.[citation needed] On the other hand, the premiere was a great success. In
any case, Beethoven was not to blame, as violinist Joseph Böhm recalled:

Beethoven himself conducted, that is, he stood in front of a conductor's stand and threw himself back
and forth like a madman. At one moment he stretched to his full height, at the next he crouched down
to the floor, he flailed about with his hands and feet as though he wanted to play all the instruments
and sing all the chorus parts. – The actual direction was in [Louis] Duport's[n 1] hands; we musicians
followed his baton only.[17]

When the audience applauded—testimonies differ over whether at the end of the scherzo or
symphony—Beethoven was several measures off and still conducting. Because of that, the contralto
Caroline Unger walked over and turned Beethoven around to accept the audience's cheers and
applause. According to the critic for the Theater-Zeitung, "the public received the musical hero with the
utmost respect and sympathy, listened to his wonderful, gigantic creations with the most absorbed
attention and broke out in jubilant applause, often during sections, and repeatedly at the end of
them."[18] The audience acclaimed him through standing ovations five times; there were handkerchiefs
in the air, hats, raised hands, so that Beethoven, who could not hear the applause, could at least see the
ovations.[citation needed]

Editions[edit]

The first German edition was printed by B. Schott's Söhne (Mainz) in 1826. The Breitkopf & Härtel
edition dating from 1864 has been used widely by orchestras.[19] In 1997, Bärenreiter published an
edition by Jonathan Del Mar.[20] According to Del Mar, this edition corrects nearly 3,000 mistakes in the
Breitkopf edition, some of which were "remarkable".[21] David Levy, however, criticized this edition,
saying that it could create "quite possibly false" traditions.[22] Breitkopf also published a new edition by
Peter Hauschild in 2005.[23]

Instrumentation[edit]

The symphony is scored for the following orchestra. These are by far the largest forces needed for any
Beethoven symphony; at the premiere, Beethoven augmented them further by assigning two players to
each wind part.[24]

Woodwinds Brass Voices (fourth

movement only)
Piccolo (fourth movement 4 Horns in D, B♭ and E♭
only) Soprano solo
2 Trumpets in D and B♭
2 Flutes Alto solo
3 Trombones (alto, tenor, and bass; second and
2 Oboes fourth movements only) Tenor solo

2 Clarinets in A, B♭ and C Percussion Bass solo

2 Bassoons Timpani SATB choir (tenor briefly

divides)
Contrabassoon (fourth Bass drum (fourth movement only)
movement only) Strings
Triangle (fourth movement only)
Violins I, II
Cymbals (fourth movement only)
Violas

Cellos

Double basses

Form[edit]

The symphony is in four movements. The structure of each movement is as follows:[25]

Tempo marking Meter Key

Movement I

2
Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso = 88 d
4

Movement II

3
Molto vivace . = 116 d
4

2
Presto = 116 D
2
 3
Molto vivace d
4

2
Presto D
2

Movement III

4
Adagio molto e cantabile = 60 B♭
4

3
Andante moderato = 63 D
4

4
Tempo I B♭
4

3
Andante moderato G
4

4
Adagio E♭
4

12
Lo stesso tempo B♭
8

Movement IV

3
Presto . = 66 d
4

4
Allegro assai = 80 D
4

3
Presto ("O Freunde") d
4

4
Allegro assai ("Freude, schöner Götterfunken") D
4

6
Alla marcia; Allegro assai vivace . = 84 ("Froh, wie seine Sonnen") B♭
8

3
Andante maestoso = 72 ("Seid umschlungen, Millionen!") G
2
 Allegro energico, sempre ben marcato . = 84 6
D
("Freude, schöner Götterfunken" – "Seid umschlungen, Millionen!") 4

2
Allegro ma non tanto = 120 ("Freude, Tochter aus Elysium!") D
2

2
Prestissimo = 132 ("Seid umschlungen, Millionen!") D
2

Beethoven changes the usual pattern of Classical symphonies in placing the scherzo movement before
the slow movement (in symphonies, slow movements are usually placed before scherzi).[26] This was
the first time he did this in a symphony, although he had done so in some previous works, including the
String Quartet Op. 18 no. 5, the "Archduke" piano trio Op. 97, the Hammerklavier piano sonata Op. 106.
Haydn, too, had used this arrangement in a number of his own works such as the String Quartet No. 30
in E♭ major, as did Mozart in three of the Haydn Quartets and the G minor String Quintet.

I. Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso[edit]

The first movement is in sonata form without an exposition repeat. It begins with open fifths (A and E)
played pianissimo by tremolo strings, steadily building up until the first main theme in D minor at m.
17.[27]

0:00

The opening, with its perfect fifth quietly emerging, resembles the sound of an orchestra tuning up.[28]

At the outset of the recapitulation (which repeats the main melodic themes) in m. 301, the theme
returns, this time played fortissimo and in D major, rather than D minor. The movement ends with a
massive coda that takes up nearly a quarter of the movement, as in Beethoven's Third and Fifth
Symphonies.[29]

A typical performance lasts about 15 minutes.

II. Molto vivace[edit]

The second movement is a scherzo and trio. Like the first movement, the scherzo is in D minor, with the
introduction bearing a passing resemblance to the opening theme of the first movement, a pattern also
found in the Hammerklavier piano sonata, written a few years earlier. At times during the piece,
Beethoven specifies one downbeat every three measures—perhaps because of the fast tempo—with
the direction ritmo di tre battute (rhythm of three beats) and one beat every four measures with the
direction ritmo di quattro battute (rhythm of four beats). Beethoven had been criticized before for
failing to adhere to standard Classical form for his compositions. He used this movement to answer his
critics.[citation needed] Normally, a scherzo is in triple time. Beethoven wrote this piece in triple time
but punctuated it in a way that, when coupled with the tempo, makes it sound as if it is in quadruple
time.

While adhering to the standard compound ternary design (three-part structure) of a dance movement
(scherzo-trio-scherzo or minuet-trio-minuet), the scherzo section has an elaborate internal structure; it
is a complete sonata form. Within this sonata form, the first group of the exposition (the statement of
the main melodic themes) starts out with a fugue in D minor on the subject below.

0:00

For the second subject, it modulates to the unusual key of C major. The exposition then repeats before a
short development section, where Beethoven explores other ideas. The recapitulation (repeating of the
melodic themes heard in the opening of the movement) further develops the exposition's themes, also
containing timpani solos. A new development section leads to the repeat of the recapitulation, and the
scherzo concludes with a brief codetta.

The contrasting trio section is in D major and in duple time. The trio is the first time the trombones play.
Following the trio, the second occurrence of the scherzo, unlike the first, plays through without any
repetition, after which there is a brief reprise of the trio, and the movement ends with an abrupt coda.

The duration of the movement is about 12 minutes, but this may vary depending on whether two
(frequently omitted) repeats are played.

III. Adagio molto e cantabile[edit]

The third movement is a lyrical, slow movement in B♭ major – a minor sixth away from the symphony's
main key of D minor. It is in a double variation form, with each pair of variations progressively
elaborating the rhythm and melodic ideas. The first variation, like the theme, is in 4
4 time, the second in 12
8. The variations are separated by passages in 3
4, the first in D major, the second in G major, the third in E♭ major, the fourth in F♯ major, and the fifth
in B major. The final variation is twice interrupted by episodes in which loud fanfares from the full
orchestra are answered by octaves by the first violins. A prominent French horn solo is assigned to the
fourth player.

A typical performance lasts about 16 minutes.

IV. Finale[edit]

The choral finale is Beethoven's musical representation of universal brotherhood based on the "Ode to
Joy" theme and is in theme and variations form.
0:00

The movement starts with an introduction in which musical material from each of the preceding three
movements – though none are literal quotations of previous music[30] – are successively presented and
then dismissed by instrumental recitatives played by the low strings. Following this, the "Ode to Joy"
theme is finally introduced by the cellos and double basses. After three instrumental variations on this
theme, the human voice is presented for the first time in the symphony by the baritone soloist, who
sings words written by Beethoven himself: ''O Freunde, nicht diese Töne!' Sondern laßt uns
angenehmere anstimmen, und freudenvollere.'' ("Oh friends, not these sounds! Let us instead strike up
more pleasing and more joyful ones!").

0:00

At about 24 minutes in length, the last movement is the longest of the four movements. Indeed, it is
longer than some entire symphonies of the Classical era. Its form has been disputed by musicologists, as
Nicholas Cook explains:

Beethoven had difficulty describing the finale himself; in letters to publishers, he said that it was like his
Choral Fantasy, Op. 80, only on a much grander scale. We might call it a cantata constructed round a
series of variations on the "Joy" theme. But this is rather a loose formulation, at least by comparison
with the way in which many twentieth-century critics have tried to codify the movement's form. Thus
there have been interminable arguments as to whether it should be seen as a kind of sonata form (with
the "Turkish" music of bar 331, which is in B♭ major, functioning as a kind of second group), or a kind of
concerto form (with bars 1–207 and 208–330 together making up a double exposition), or even a
conflation of four symphonic movements into one (with bars 331–594 representing a Scherzo, and bars
595–654 a slow movement). The reason these arguments are interminable is that each interpretation
contributes something to the understanding of the movement, but does not represent the whole
story.[31]

Cook gives the following table describing the form of the movement:[32]
Bar Key Stanza Description

1 1[n 2] d Introduction with instrumental recitative and review of movements 1–3

92 92 D "Joy" theme

116 116 "Joy" variation 1

140 140 "Joy" variation 2

164 164 "Joy" variation 3, with extension

208 1 d Introduction with vocal recitative

241 4 D V.1 "Joy" variation 4

269 33 V.2 "Joy" variation 5

297 61 V.3 "Joy" variation 6, with extension providing transition to

331 1 B♭ Introduction to

343 13 "Joy" variation 7 ("Turkish march")

375 45 C.4 "Joy" variation 8, with extension

431 101 Fugato episode based on "Joy" theme

543 213 D V.1 "Joy" variation 9

595 1 G C.1 Episode: "Seid umschlungen"

627 76 g C.3 Episode: "Ihr stürzt nieder"

655 1 D V.1, C.3 Double fugue (based on "Joy" and "Seid umschlungen" themes)

730 76 C.3 Episode: "Ihr stürzt nieder"

745 91 C.1

763 1 D V.1 Coda figure 1 (based on "Joy" theme)

832 70 Cadenza

851 1 D C.1 Coda figure 2

904 54 V.1

920 70 Coda figure 3 (based on "Joy" theme)

In line with Cook's remarks, Charles Rosen characterizes the final movement as a symphony within a
symphony, played without interruption.[33] This "inner symphony" follows the same overall pattern as
the Ninth Symphony as a whole:

First "movement": Theme and variations with slow introduction. The main theme, first in the cellos and
basses, is later recapitulated by voices.

Second "movement": Scherzo in a 6

8 military style. It begins at Alla marcia (m. 331) and concludes with a 6
8 variation of the main theme with chorus.

Third "movement": Slow meditation with a new theme on the text "Seid umschlungen, Millionen!" It
begins at Andante maestoso (m. 595).

Fourth "movement": Fugato finale on the themes of the first and third "movements". It begins at Allegro
energico (m. 763).

The movement has a thematic unity in which every part is based on either the main theme, the "Seid
umschlungen" theme, or some combination of the two.[citation needed] Indeed, Rosen also notes that
the movement can also be analysed as a set of variations and simultaneously as a concerto sonata form
with double exposition (with the fugato acting both as a development section and the second tutti of
the concerto).[33]

Text of the fourth movement[edit]

The text is largely taken from Schiller's "Ode to Joy", with a few additional introductory words written
specifically by Beethoven (shown in italics).[34] The text, without repeats, is shown below, with a
translation into English.[35] The score includes many repeats. For the full libretto, including all
repetitions, see German Wikisource.[36]

O Freunde, nicht diese Töne! Oh friends, not these sounds!

Sondern laßt uns angenehmere anstimmen, Let us instead strike up more pleasing
und freudenvollere. and more joyful ones!

Freude! Joy!
Freude! Joy!

Freude, schöner Götterfunken Joy, beautiful spark of divinity,

Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken,
Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder
Was die Mode streng geteilt;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder,
Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.
Daughter from Elysium,
We enter, burning with fervour,
heavenly being, your sanctuary!
Your magic brings together
what custom has sternly divided.
All men shall become brothers,
wherever your gentle wings hover.

Wem der große Wurf gelungen, Whoever has been lucky enough
Eines Freundes Freund zu sein; to become a friend to a friend,
Wer ein holdes Weib errungen,
Mische seinen Jubel ein!
Ja, wer auch nur eine Seele
Sein nennt auf dem Erdenrund!
Und wer's nie gekonnt, der stehle
Weinend sich aus diesem Bund!
Whoever has found a beloved wife,
let him join our songs of praise!
Yes, and anyone who can call one soul
his own on this earth!
Any who cannot, let them slink away
from this gathering in tears!

Freude trinken alle Wesen Every creature drinks in joy

An den Brüsten der Natur;
Alle Guten, alle Bösen
Folgen ihrer Rosenspur.
Küsse gab sie uns und Reben,
Einen Freund, geprüft im Tod;
Wollust ward dem Wurm gegeben,
Und der Cherub steht vor Gott.
at nature's breast;
Good and Evil alike
follow her trail of roses.
She gives us kisses and wine,
a true friend, even in death;
Even the worm was given desire,
and the cherub stands before God.

Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen Gladly, just as His suns hurtle
Durch des Himmels prächt'gen Plan, through the glorious universe,
Laufet, Brüder, eure Bahn, So you, brothers, should run your course,
Freudig, wie ein Held zum Siegen. joyfully, like a conquering hero.

Seid umschlungen, Millionen! Be embraced, you millions!

Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt! This kiss is for the whole world!
Brüder, über'm Sternenzelt Brothers, above the canopy of stars
Muß ein lieber Vater wohnen. must dwell a loving father.

Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen? Do you bow down before Him, you millions?
Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt? Do you sense your Creator, O world?
Such' ihn über'm Sternenzelt! Seek Him above the canopy of stars!
Über Sternen muß er wohnen. He must dwell beyond the stars.

Towards the end of the movement, the choir sings the last four lines of the main theme, concluding with
"Alle Menschen" before the soloists sing for one last time the song of joy at a slower tempo. The chorus
repeats parts of "Seid umschlungen, Millionen!", then quietly sings, "Tochter aus Elysium", and finally,
"Freude, schöner Götterfunken, Götterfunken!".[36]

Reception[edit]

Music critics almost universally consider the Ninth Symphony one of Beethoven's greatest works, and
among the greatest musical works ever written.[1][2] The finale, however, has had its detractors:
"[e]arly critics rejected [the finale] as cryptic and eccentric, the product of a deaf and aging
composer."[1] Verdi admired the first three movements but lamented the confused structure and the
bad writing for the voices in the last movement:

The alpha and omega is Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, marvelous in the first three movements, very
badly set in the last. No one will ever approach the sublimity of the first movement, but it will be an easy
task to write as badly for voices as in the last movement. And supported by the authority of Beethoven,
they will all shout: "That's the way to do it...[37]

— Giuseppe Verdi, 1878

Performance challenges[edit]

Handwritten page of the fourth movement

Metronome markings[edit]

Conductors in the historically informed performance movement, notably Roger Norrington,[38] have
used Beethoven's suggested tempos, to mixed reviews. Benjamin Zander has made a case for following
Beethoven's metronome markings, both in writing[21] and in performances with the Boston
Philharmonic Orchestra and Philharmonia Orchestra of London.[39][40] Beethoven's metronome still
exists and was tested and found accurate,[41] but the original heavy weight (whose position is vital to its
accuracy) is missing and many musicians have considered his metronome marks to be unacceptably
high.[42]

Re-orchestrations and alterations[edit]

A number of conductors have made alterations in the instrumentation of the symphony. Notably,
Richard Wagner doubled many woodwind passages, a modification greatly extended by Gustav
Mahler,[43] who revised the orchestration of the Ninth to make it sound like what he believed
Beethoven would have wanted if given a modern orchestra.[44] Wagner's Dresden performance of 1864
was the first to place the chorus and the solo singers behind the orchestra as has since become
standard; previous conductors placed them between the orchestra and the audience.[43]

2nd bassoon doubling basses in the finale[edit]

Beethoven's indication that the 2nd bassoon should double the basses in measures 115–164 of the
finale was not included in the Breitkopf & Härtel parts, though it was included in the full score.[45]
Ino Savini conducting the Ninth Symphony at the Rivoli Theatre in Porto, Portugal (1955)

Notable performances and recordings[edit]

The British premiere of the symphony was presented on 21 March 1825 by its commissioners, the
Philharmonic Society of London, at its Argyll Rooms conducted by Sir George Smart and with the choral
part sung in Italian. The American premiere was presented on 20 May 1846 by the newly formed New
York Philharmonic at Castle Garden (in an attempt to raise funds for a new concert hall), conducted by
the English-born George Loder, with the choral part translated into English for the first time.

Richard Wagner conducted the symphony many times in his career. His last performance took place in
1872 at a concert to mark the foundation stone for the Bayreuth Festspielhaus. Wagner later published
an essay entitled "The rendering of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony" in which he described the changes he
made to the orchestration (see above) for the 1872 performance.[46]

The London Philharmonic Choir debuted on 15 May 1947 performing the Ninth Symphony with the
London Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Victor de Sabata at the Royal Albert Hall.[47] In
1951, Wilhelm Furtwängler and the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra reopened the Bayreuth Festival with a
performance of the symphony, after the Allies temporarily suspended the Festival following the Second
World War.[48][49]

American conductor Leonard Bernstein made his first of three recordings of the Beethoven Ninth in
1964 with the New York Philharmonic, for Columbia Masterworks, with soloists Martina Arroyo
(soprano), Regina Sarfaty (mezzo), Nicholas di Virgilio (tenor), Norman Scott (bass), and the Juilliard
Chorus. It was later reissued on CD.

Bernstein made his second recording of the piece with the Vienna Philharmonic for Deutsche
Grammophon, in 1979. This featured Gwyneth Jones (soprano), Hanna Schwarz (mezzo), René Kollo
(tenor), and Kurt Moll (bass), with the chorus of the Vienna State Opera.[50]

Bernstein conducted a version of the Ninth at the Schauspielhaus in East Berlin, with Freiheit (Freedom)
replacing Freude (Joy), to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall during Christmas 1989.[51] This concert
was performed by an orchestra and chorus made up of many nationalities: from both Germanies, the
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Chorus of the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra,
and members of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, the Philharmonischer Kinderchor Dresden; from
the Soviet Union, members of the orchestra of the Kirov Theatre; from the United Kingdom, members of
the London Symphony Orchestra; from the US, members of the New York Philharmonic; and from
France, members of the Orchestre de Paris. Soloists were June Anderson, soprano, Sarah Walker,
mezzo-soprano, Klaus König, tenor, and Jan-Hendrik Rootering, bass.[52] It was the last time that
Bernstein conducted the symphony; he died ten months later.

Sir Georg Solti recorded the symphony with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chicago Symphony
Chorus on two occasions: first in 1972 with soloists Pilar Lorengar, Yvonne Minton, Stuart Burrows, and
Martti Talvela; and again in 1986 with soloists Jessye Norman, Reinhild Runkel, Robert Schunk, and Hans
Sotin. On both occasions, the chorus was prepared by Margaret Hillis. The second recording won the
1987 Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance.[53]

The BBC Proms Youth Choir performed the piece alongside Sir Georg Solti's UNESCO World Orchestra for
Peace at the Royal Albert Hall during the 2018 Proms at Prom 9, titled "War & Peace" as a
commemoration to the centenary of the end of World War One.[54]

There have been various attempts to record the Ninth to come closer to what Beethoven's
contemporaries would have heard, i.e., with period instruments:

Roger Norrington conducting the London Classical Players recorded it with period instruments for a
1987 release by EMI Records (rereleased in 1997 under the Virgin Classics label).

Benjamin Zander made a 1992 recording of the Ninth with the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and
noted soprano Dominique Labelle (who first performed the work with Robert Shaw), following
Beethoven's own metronome markings. Following further research, Zander released a second recording
with the Philharmonia Orchestra in 2018 and paired it with a 3-hour audio lecture defending his new
interpretation.

Philippe Herreweghe recorded the Ninth with his period instrument Orchestre des Champs-Élysées and
his Collegium Vocale chorus for Harmonia Mundi in 1999.

Sir John Eliot Gardiner recorded his period instrument version of the Ninth Symphony,[55] conducting
his Monteverdi Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique in 1992. It was first released by
Deutsche Grammophon in 1994 on their early music Archiv Produktion label as part of his complete
cycle of the Beethoven symphonies. His soloists included Ľuba Orgonášová, Anne Sofie von Otter,
Anthony Rolfe Johnson and Gilles Cachemaille.

An additional period instrument recording by Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music
was released in 1997 under the label Éditions de l'Oiseau-Lyre.

At 79 minutes, one of the longest Ninths recorded is Karl Böhm's, conducting the Vienna Philharmonic in
1981 with Jessye Norman and Plácido Domingo among the soloists.[56]

Influence[edit]
Plate installed at Building Ungargasse No. 5. It says: "In this house Ludwig van Beethoven finished his
Symphony No. 9 during winter 1823/24. In memorial of the centenary of the world premiere on May 7,
1824 the plate was dedicated to the master and his work by the Wiener Schubertbund on May 7, 1924."

Many later composers of the Romantic period and beyond were influenced by the Ninth Symphony.

An important theme in the finale of Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 1 in C minor is related to the "Ode
to Joy" theme from the last movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. When this was pointed out to
Brahms, he is reputed to have retorted "Any fool can see that!" Brahms's first symphony was, at times,
both praised and derided as "Beethoven's Tenth".[57]

The Ninth Symphony influenced the forms that Anton Bruckner used for the movements of his
symphonies. His Symphony No. 3 is in the same D-minor key as Beethoven's 9th and makes substantial
use of thematic ideas from it. The colossal slow movement of Bruckner's Symphony No. 7, "as usual",
takes the same A–B–A–B–A form as the 3rd movement of Beethoven's symphony and also uses some
figuration from it.[58]

In the opening notes of the third movement of his Symphony No. 9 (From the New World), Antonín
Dvořák pays homage to the scherzo of this symphony with his falling fourths and timpani strokes.[59]

Likewise, Béla Bartók borrows the opening motif of the scherzo from Beethoven's Ninth symphony to
introduce the second movement scherzo in his own Four Orchestral Pieces, Op. 12 (Sz 51).[60][61]

One legend is that the compact disc was deliberately designed to have a 74-minute playing time so that
it could accommodate Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. Kees Immink, Philips' chief engineer, who
developed the CD, recalls that a commercial tug-of-war between the development partners, Sony and
Philips, led to a settlement in a neutral 12-cm diameter format. The 1951 performance of the Ninth
Symphony conducted by Furtwängler was brought forward as the perfect excuse for the change,[62][63]
and was put forth in a Philips news release celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Compact Disc as the
reason for the 74-minute length.[64]

In the film The Pervert's Guide to Ideology, the psychoanalytical Communist philosopher Slavoj Žižek
comments on the use of the Ode by Nazism, Bolshevism, the Chinese Cultural Revolution, the East-West
German Olympic team, Southern Rhodesia, Abimael Guzmán (leader of the Shining Path), and the
Council of Europe and the European Union.[65]

Use as (national) anthem[edit]

Anthem of Europe (short version)

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0:00

Problems playing this file? See media help.

During the division of Germany in the Cold War, the "Ode to Joy" segment of the symphony was played
in lieu of an anthem at the Olympic Games for the United Team of Germany between 1956 and 1968. In
1972, the musical backing (without the words) was adopted as the Anthem of Europe by the Council of
Europe and subsequently by the European Communities (now the European Union) in 1985.[66][67] The
"Ode to Joy" was used as the national anthem of Rhodesia between 1974 and 1979, as "Rise, O Voices of
Rhodesia".[68]

Use as a hymn melody[edit]

In 1907, the Presbyterian pastor Henry van Dyke wrote the hymn "Joyful, Joyful, we adore thee" while
staying at Williams College.[69] The hymn is commonly sung in English-language churches to the "Ode to
Joy" melody from this symphony.[70]

Year-end tradition[edit]

The German workers' movement began the tradition of performing the Ninth Symphony on New Year's
Eve in 1918. Performances started at 11pm so that the symphony's finale would be played at the
beginning of the new year. This tradition continued during the Nazi period and was also observed by
East Germany after the war.[71]

The Ninth Symphony is traditionally performed throughout Japan at the end of the year. In December
2009, for example, there were 55 performances of the symphony by various major orchestras and choirs
in Japan.[72]

It was introduced to Japan during World War I by German prisoners held at the Bandō prisoner-of-war
camp. Japanese orchestras, notably the NHK Symphony Orchestra, began performing the symphony in
1925 and during World War II, the Imperial government promoted performances of the symphony,
including on New Year's Eve. In an effort to capitalize on its popularity, orchestras and choruses
undergoing economic hard times during Japan's reconstruction, performed the piece at year's end. In
the 1960s, these year-end performances of the symphony became more widespread, and included the
participation of local choirs and orchestras, firmly establishing a tradition that continues today.

See also[edit]

Curse of the ninth

References[edit]

Notes

^ Presumably, Böhm meant the conductor Michael Umlauf

^ The second column of bar numbers refers to the editions in which the finale is subdivided. Verses and
choruses are numbered in accordance with the complete text of Schiller's "An die Freude"

Citations

^ Jump up to: a b c d Cook 1993, Product description (blurb). "Beethoven's Ninth Symphony is
acknowledged as one of the supreme masterpieces of the Western tradition. More than any other
musical work it has become an international symbol of unity and affirmation."

^ Jump up to: a b Service, Tom (9 September 2014). "Symphony guide: Beethoven's Ninth ('Choral')".
The Guardian. the central artwork of Western music, the symphony to end all symphonies

^ "Lansing Symphony Orchestra to perform joyful Beethoven’s 9th" by Ken Glickman, Lansing State
Journal, 2 November 2016

^ "Beethoven's Ninth: 'Ode to Joy'" Archived 1 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Great Falls
Symphony, 2017/18 announcement

^ Bonds, Mark Evan, "Symphony: II. The 19th century", The New Grove Dictionary of Music and
Musicians, Second Edition (London: Macmillan, 2001), 29 vols. ISBN 0-333-60800-3, 24:837.

^ Memory of the World (2001) – Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No 9, D minor, Op. 125

^ Solomon, Maynard. Beethoven. New York: Schirmer Books, 1997, p. 251.

^ Breitkopf Urtext, Beethoven: Symphonie Nr. 9 d-moll Archived 1 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine,
op. 125, pbl.: Hauschild, Peter, p. VIII

^ Hopkins (1981, 249)

^ Robert W. Gutman, Mozart: A Cultural Biography, 1999, p. 344

^ Jump up to: a b Sachs, Harvey (2010), The Ninth: Beethoven and the World in 1824, Faber

^ Jump up to: a b Levy, David Benjamin. Beethoven: The Ninth Symphony. Yale University Press 2003.

^ Kelly, Thomas Forrest (2000). First Nights: Five Musical Premiers (Chapter 3). Yale University Press,
2001.
^ Elson, Louis, Chief Editor. University Musical Encyclopedia of Vocal Music. University Society, New
York, 1912

^ Life of Henriette Sontag, Countess de Rossi. (Various Authors) Stringer & Townsend, publishers. New
York, 1852.

^ Kennedy, Michael and Bourne, Joyce (1996). The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. Oxford
University Press, 2007.

^ Cook 1993, p. 22

^ Cook 1993, p. 23

^ Del Mar, Jonathan (July – December 1999). "Jonathan Del Mar, New Urtext Edition: Beethoven
Symphonies 1–9". British Academy Review. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 13
November 2007.

^ "Ludwig van Beethoven The Nine Symphonies The New Bärenreiter Urtext Edition". Archived from the
original on 17 October 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2007.

^ Jump up to: a b Zander, Benjamin. "Beethoven 9 The fundamental reappraisal of a classic". Archived
from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2007.

^ "Concerning the Review of the Urtext Edition of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony". Archived from the
original on 28 June 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2007.

^ "Beethoven The Nine Symphonies" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2008.

^ Thayer, Alexander Wheelock. Thayer's Life of Beethoven. Revised and edited by Elliott Forbes.
(Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1973), p. 905.

^ IMSLP score.

^ Jackson 1999, 26; Stein 1979, 106

^ Cook 1993, p. 28

^ Young, John Bell (2008). Beethoven's Symphonies: A Guided Tour. New York: Amadeus Press.
ISBN 1574671693. OCLC 180757068.

^ Cook 1993, p. 30

^ Cook 1993, p. 36

^ Cook 1993, p. 34

^ Cook 1993, p. 35

^ Jump up to: a b Rosen, Charles. The Classical Style: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven. p. 440. New York:
Norton, 1997.

^ "Beethoven Foundation – Schiller's "An die Freude" and Authoritative Translation".

^ The translation is taken from the BBC Proms 2013 programme, for a concert held at the Royal Albert
Hall (Prom 38, 11 August 2013). This concert was broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and later on BBC4
television on 6 September 2013, where the same translation was used as subtitles.

^ Jump up to: a b "An die Freude" (Beethoven), German Wikisource

^ Letter of April 1878 in Giuseppe Verdi: Autobiografia delle Lettere, Aldo Oberdorfer ed., Milano, 1941,
p. 325.

^ Norrington, Roger (14 March 2009). "In tune with the time". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 15 May
2013.

^ "Concert: Beethoven 9th, Benjamin Zander and the Boston Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall" by Bernhard
Holland, The New York Times, 11 October 1983

^ Recording of the Beethoven 9th with Benjamin Zander, Dominique Labelle, D'Anna Fortunato, Brad
Cresswell, David Arnold, the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and Chorus Pro Musica

^ Gunther Schuller, The Compleat Conductor

^ Sture Forsén, Harry B. Gray, L. K. Olof Lindgren, and Shirley B. Gray. October 2013. "Was Something
Wrong with Beethoven’s Metronome?", Notices of the American Mathematical Society 60(9):1146–53.

^ Jump up to: a b Raymond Holden, "The iconic symphony: performing Beethoven's Ninth Wagner's
Way" The Musical Times, Winter 2011

^ Bauer-Lechner, Natalie: Erinnerungen an Gustav Mahler, p. 131. E.P. Tal & Co. Verlag, 1923

^ Del Mar, Jonathan (1981) Orchestral Variations: Confusion and Error in the Orchestral Repertoire
London: Eulenburg Books, p. 43

^ Cook 1993, pp. 51–2

^ Anon. (April 1947). "London Concerts". The Musical Times. Musical Times Publications Ltd. 88 (1250):
139. doi:10.2307/933316. JSTOR 933316.

^ Philips. "Beethoven's Ninth Symphony of greater importance than technology". Archived from the
original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 9 February 2007.

^ AES. "AES Oral History Project: Kees A.Schouhamer Immink". Retrieved 29 July 2008.

^ http://www.leonardbernstein.com/disc_other.php?disc_other_php=&disc_other.php=&page=8

^ Makell (2002), p. 98

^ Naxos (2006). "Ode To Freedom – Beethoven: Symphony No. 9". Naxos.com Classical Music Catalogue.
Retrieved 26 November 2006.

^ Grammy.com. "Past Winners Search". Retrieved 5 April 2011.

^ "Prom 9: War & Peace". BBC Music Events. Retrieved 28 April 2019.

^ Makell (2002), p. 99
^ Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, Karl Böhm conducting the Vienna Philharmonic; Jessye Norman, Plácido
Domingo, Brigitte Fassbaender, Walter Berry (1981)

^ Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68. The Kennedy Center, 2006

^ Taruskin, Richard (2010). Music in the Nineteenth Century. The Oxford History of Western Music. 3.
New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 747–51. ISBN 978-0-19-538483-3.

^ Steinberg, Michael. The Symphony: a listeners guide. p. 153. Oxford University Press, 1995.

^ Howard, Orrin. "About the Piece | Four Orchestral Pieces, Op. 12". Los Angeles Philharmonic. Archived
from the original on 8 June 2015. Retrieved 27 December 2012.

^ Bartók, Béla (1912). 4 Pieces, Op. 12 – Violin I – (Musical Score) (PDF). Universal Edition. p. 3.

^ K.A. Schouhamer Immink (2007). "Shannon, Beethoven, and the Compact Disc". IEEE Information
Theory Society Newsletter. 57: 42–46. Retrieved 6 February 2018.

^ K.A. Schouhamer Immink (2018). "How we made the compact disc". Nature Electronics. 1. Retrieved
16 April 2018. An international collaboration between Philips and the Sony Corporation lead to the
creation of the compact disc. The author explains how it came about

^ "Philips celebrates 25th anniversary of the Compact Disc"

^ Slavoj Žižek (7 September 2012). The Pervert's Guide to Ideology (Motion picture). Zeitgeist Films. Lay
summary – openculture.com (26 November 2013).

^ "The European Anthem". Europa.

^ Europa – The EU at a glance – The European Anthem

^ "Rhodesia picks Ode to Joy", The Vancouver Sun, 30 August 1974

^ van Dyke, Henry (2004). The poems of Henry van Dyke. Netherlands: Fredonia Books.
ISBN 1410105741.

^ Rev. Corey F. O'Brien, "November 9, 2008 sermon[permanent dead link]" at North Prospect Union
United Church of Christ in Medford.

^ "Beethovens 9. Sinfonie – Musik für alle Zwecke – Die Neunte und Europa: "Die Marseillaise der
Menschheit", by Niels Kaiser, hr2, 26 January 2011 (in German)

^ Brasor, Philip, "Japan makes Beethoven's Ninth No. 1 for the holidays", The Japan Times, 24 December
2010, p. 20, retrieved on 24 December 2010;[dead link]
Uranaka, Taiga, "Beethoven concert to fete students' wartime sendoff", The Japan Times, 1 December
1999, retrieved on 24 December 2010.[dead link]

Bibliography[edit]

Selected books and scholarly articles:

Buch, Esteban, Beethoven's Ninth: A Political History, translated by Richard Miller, ISBN 0-226-07824-8
(University Of Chicago Press)
Cook, Nicholas (1993). Beethoven: Symphony No. 9. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-
521-39039-7.

Hopkins, Antony (1981) The Nine Symphonies of Beethoven. London: Heinemann.

Levy, David Benjamin, "Beethoven: the Ninth Symphony", revised edition (Yale University Press, 2003).

Makell, Talli, "Ludwig van Beethoven" in Classical Music: The Listener's Companion ed. Alexander J.
Morin (San Francisco: Backbeat Books, 2002)

Parsons, James, "Deine Zauber binden wieder: Beethoven, Schiller, and the Joyous Reconciliation of
Opposites" ("Your magic binds again"), Beethoven Forum (2002) 9/1, 1–53.

Rasmussen, Michelle, "All Men Become Brothers: The Decades-Long Struggle for Beethoven's Ninth
Symphony", The Schiller Institute, June, 2015.

Sachs, Harvey (2010), The Ninth: Beethoven and the World in 1824, Faber. (review by Philip Hensher,
The Daily Telegraph, 5 July 2010)

Taruskin, Richard, "Resisting the Ninth", in his Text and Act: Essays on Music and Performance (Oxford
University Press, 1995).

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven).

Scores, manuscripts and text

Symphony No. 9, Op. 125: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)

Free sheet music of Symphony No. 9 from Cantorion.org

Original manuscript (site in German)

Score, William and Gayle Cook Music Library, Indiana University School of Music

Text/libretto, with translation, in English and German

Symphony No. 9 is available in PDF format created from MuseData.

Analysis

Beethoven Symphony No. 9, an analysis from all-about-beethoven.com

Analysis for students (with timings) of the final movement, at Washington State University

Hinton, Stephen (Summer 1998). "Not Which Tones? The Crux of Beethoven's Ninth". 19th-Century
Music. 22 (1): 61–77. doi:10.1525/ncm.1998.22.1.02a00040. JSTOR 746792.

Signell, Karl, "The Riddle of Beethoven's Alla Marcia in his Ninth Symphony" (self-published)
Beethoven 9, Benjamin Zander advocating a stricter adherence to Beethoven's metronome indications,
with reference to Jonathan del Mar's research (before the Bärenreiter edition was published) and to
Stravinsky's intuition about the correct tempo for the Scherzo Trio

Audio

Christoph Eschenbach conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra from National Public Radio

Felix Weingartner conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (1935 recording) from the Internet
Archive

Otto Klemperer conducting the Concertbegouw Orchestra (1956 live recording) from the Internet
Archive

Video

Furtwängler on 19 March 1942 on YouTube, Wilhelm Furtwängler conducting the Berlin Philharmonic on
the eve of Hitler's 53rd birthday

1st mvt. on YouTube, 2nd mvt. on YouTube, 3rd mvt. on YouTube, 4th mvt. on YouTube, Nicholas
McGegan conducting the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, graphical score

Beethoven 9th on YouTube, Leonard Bernstein conducting at The Freedom Concert in Berlin, Christmas
1989

Beethoven 9th – fourth movement on YouTube, Leonard Slatkin conducting the fourth movement at The
Last Night of the Proms in Royal Albert Hall, a couple of days after 9/11 2001

Other material

Official EU page about the anthem

Program note from the Kennedy Center with information about the finale as it is and might have been

Following the Ninth: In the Footsteps of Beethoven's Final Symphony, Kerry Candaele's 2013
documentary film about the Ninth Symphony

show

Symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven

No. 1 in C major

No. 2 in D major

No. 3 in E♭ major (Eroica)

No. 4 in B♭ major

No. 5 in C minor

No. 6 in F major (Pastoral)

No. 7 in A major

No. 8 in F major

No. 9 in D minor (Choral)

Hypothetical: No. 10 in E♭ major

show

Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9

"Ode to Joy"

"The Hymn of Joy"

Musical "A Song of Joy"

settings "Anthem of Europe"

"Rise, O Voices of Rhodesia"

"Visan om solen, månen och planeterna"

"Road to Joy"

"Will You Be There"

Other Beethoven's Ninth Symphony CD-ROM

Copying Beethoven

9 Beet Stretch

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