When you say the name Beethoven to anyone, even to non musicians, they'll sing one of two melodies. They'll either boom out, “DA DA DA DAAAAHHHH” or they'll sing the little ditty that everyone inevitably plays when learning a new instrument, often titled in our method books as ‘Ode To Joy’. So, why am I talking about music from a couple of centuries ago?
The second song is kind of big right now. It's always a favorite for many but it's bigger than usual. Why? Well, this year marks the 200th anniversary of ‘Symphony Number 9’ from which the melody ‘Ode To Joy’ comes from.
Let's do a quick music history lesson. Ludwig van Beethoven was a composer and pianist born in Bonn, Germany sometime in December 1770. Over the span of 45 year, he wrote 722 compositions with his works spanning both the Classical and the Romantic periods of music.
In addition to his music, many people know of Beethoven as the composer who went deaf but still wrote music. Indeed, in 1798, he first began to notice difficulties with his hearing that made performing on the piano difficult which cut off an important source of income for him. Of course, it's impossible to say for sure what caused his deafness but, based on a description of his symptoms, modern doctors believe it was likely otosclerosis. By the end of his life, he was almost completely deaf. He passed away on March 26, 1827 in Vienna, Austria. He was only 56 years old.
This is part of what makes his Symphony Number 9 so special. It was written between 1822 and 1824 at a time when his deafness was it's worst. Yet the piece is regarded as a masterpiece of Western music. And it's not hard to see - or rather, to hear why.
At this point, I could go into a dull analysis of this work. But instead, I'm going to recommend that you track down this piece and just listen to it. Close your eyes, forget about the world, and savor all 70 minutes. There's a time for academics but on the 200th anniversary of this work's first performance at Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna, Austria on May 7th, 1824, it's best to just listen and imagine yourself there in the audience hearing it for the first time.
On a personal note, I'd like to thank the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra for their fabulous performance of this work of genius this past weekend. I only wish I could have been there in person but the option of watching live through the magic of the internet was the next best thing.
Some articles worth reading regarding both the excitement the world is feeling right now with this anniversary as well as some information on the man who brought it to us. If you're able to find it, I definitely recommend the graphic novel about Beethoven as it combines elements of his life and his possible muses.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c14kv70d1keo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven
https://z2comics.com/collections/beethoven