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https://theconversation.com/beethovens-ninth-symphony-at-200-revolutionary-work-of-art-has-spawned-two-centuries-of-joy-goodwill-and-propaganda-221734>
"In early 1824, 30 members of Vienna’s music community sent a letter to Ludwig
van Beethoven petitioning the great composer to reconsider his plans to
premiere his latest work in Berlin and instead debut the symphony in Vienna.
Beethoven had lived in Vienna since 1792, when he left his hometown of Bonn,
Germany, to pursue a career as a composer. Beethoven rose to world renown, but
by the 1820s he had fallen out of favor with Viennese arts patrons who, at the
time, were drawn to the sounds and styles of Italian composers.
Beethoven had not appeared before a Viennese audience in a dozen years, but he
was moved by the letter’s sentiment and agreed to debut his new work, Symphony
No. 9 in D minor, in the city. The premiere performance was on May 7, 1824, at
Kärntnertor Theater.
Concert promoters promised the public that the legendary – and legendarily
antisocial – composer would be present at the performance of his latest
symphony. Indeed, during the entirety of the performance, he was on stage, his
back to the audience, as described by Maynard Solomon in his acclaimed
biography of Beethoven.
The composer insisted upon conducting the symphony from a conductor’s stand.
The official conductor at the concert, Michael Umlauf, had instructed the
musicians – a Viennese orchestra and choir – to ignore Beethoven, who was
completely deaf and who theoretically could not be relied upon to keep time.
The performance was interrupted several times by rapturous applause from the
approximately 2,000 attendees, but Beethoven could not hear the reaction.
According to eyewitnesses, the composer “threw himself back and forth like a
madman” and fell several bars behind in his “conducting.”
The enthusiastic response to the symphony’s debut performance presaged its
reception in the European music community, globally and across time."
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*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
