Ludwig van Beethoven · Classification
1770–1827
1824 · Coral symphony · Vienna, Carinthia Gate Theatre
Tonality
Minor re. The end with the «Anthem to joy» culminates in major.
Instruments
- 2 flutes and flautin
- 2 oboes
- 2 clarings
- 2 fages and contrafagot
- 4 tubes
- 2 trumpets
- 3 thrombons
- Timbals, triangle, saucers and bulb
- Rope (violins, violas, cello and contrabajes)
From the atril
The Ninth was released in Vienna on May 7, 1824. Beethoven, completely deaf, was on stage next to the director marking the times. At the end, he followed the public behind him, without hearing the ovation, until the contralto Caroline Unger made him turn to see the applause. It is the first great symphony with chorus of history, and its final theme, the «Ode to joy»today is the anthem of the European Union.
The first movement arises from nothing, from empty fifths in trémolo, until the subject is in a minor re with a cosmic force. The second is an unrelenting scherzo with famous timbal blows. The third, an adage of variations, is of an almost religious serenity. The end begins with a chaos of fanfare that the cello and contrabajos interrupt in a recital, rejecting the above themes, until they propose the melody of joy. Then the baritone and chorus, on Schiller's ode, enter a celebration of human fraternity. For chorus and soloists it is a very hard test, with very sharp passages; for all, a unique experience.
What to hear
- The empty fifths of the beginning.
- The recitation of cello and contrabajos from the end.
- The entrance of the choir with the «Ode to joy».
