Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 | Margarita Höhenrieder, Staatskapelle Dresden

Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major by Ludwig van Beethoven is Beethoven for piano virtuosos. Margarita Höhenrieder shines on the piano, accompanied by the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden conducted by Fabio Luisi. The concert took place in 2008 at the Philharmonie im Gasteig Munich. (00:00) I. Allegro con brio (18:39) II Largo (29:50) III Rondo: Allegro scherzando Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) wrote seven piano concertos, five of which are numbered as opuses. The Piano Concerto in C major, Op. 15 is known as Piano Concerto No. 1, even though it was not the first concerto for piano that Beethoven wrote. First drafts for the Piano Concerto in C major date from 1793, a first complete transcription was available in late 1794 or early 1795, a new score existed before 1800 and finally the print appeared in 1801 after the solo part had been rewritten a second time. Beethoven probably performed an early version of the C major concerto himself in Vienna in 1795, where he is also thought to have performed a later version for the first time in 1800. Beethoven initially wrote his piano concertos primarily for himself. As a piano virtuoso, he wanted to show off his skills to an audience with the solo concertos; he was, after all, famous for his brilliant improvisations on the popular instrument. There are similarities between the Piano Concerto in C major and Symphony No. 1, not only with respect to the period in which they were composed. In both works, the young Beethoven’s knack of bringing forth the most diverse musical emotions from a simple thematic idea is already evident. And both works are characterized by a festive tone in which virtuosity is celebrated to the highest degree.

Anne-Sophie Mutter, Daniel Barenboim, Yo-Yo Ma – Beethoven: Triple Concert

Three classical music giants, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Yo-Yo Ma and Daniel Barenboim celebrate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth by recording the Triple Concerto. Pairing the Concerto with the Seventh Symphony, the album also marks the 20th birthday of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. The Triple Concerto has a special place in Beethoven’s oeuvre, revealing his revolutionary spirit and ingrained humour both in its sophisticated architecture and in its musical idiom. Ever inventive, creative and original, here Beethoven stages a lavish musical feast over-flowing with melody, a feast. Yo-Yo Ma puts it in these words: “For me, in the Triple Concerto, it’s the constant invention that always takes me by surprise. You know what I love about the piece? It’s so celebratory, so positive.” Performed by three of today’s most renowned classical artists and Beethoven interpreters – Anne-Sophie Mutter, Yo-Yo Ma and Daniel Barenboim and accompanied by the acclaimed West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. Watch them perform Beethoven's Triple Concerto in C Major, Op. 56, No.2 Largo – Attacca, Live at Philharmonie, Berlin (2019). Anne-Sophie Mutter, Daniel Barenboim, Yo-Yo Ma – Beethoven: Triple Concerto C Major, Op. 56, No. 2

Beethoven's Meaning of Life - The double fugue in the ninth symphony

A visual exploration of the double fugue from Beethoven's choral 9th symphony...plus an explanation of what it all might mean... Timestamps 00:00 Introduction 01:06 Theme 1 02:55 Theme 2 04:33 Extra bits 06:01 The Double Fugue 07:29 The Why?

Beethoven - 5th Piano Concerto 'Emperor'

Krystian Zimerman, Wiener Philharmoniker, Leonard Bernstein

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major op. 58 | Y. E. Son

44,844 views Jan 9, 2023 ST.-GEORGEN-KIRCHE

The NDR Radiophiharmonie performs Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 58 under the baton of Andrew Manze. LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 58 00:00 I. Allegro moderato 00:02 II. Andante con moto 19:10 III. Rondo. Vivace 24:40 Yeol Eum Son, piano Andrew Manze, conductor NDR Radiophilharmonie Excerpt from the concert recording from November 5, 2022, St.George's Church, Wismar Website: https://www.ndr.de/radiophilharmonie Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NDRRadiophil...

L. van Beethoven: Klavierkonzert Nr. 1 in C-Dur

McDonald’s restaurant in Wales to play Beethoven to tackle late-night antisocial behaviour

McDonald's in Wrexham to play Beethoven after 5pm to deter loiterers. Picture: Alamy

By Maddy Shaw Roberts, ClassicFM

 

A Welsh branch of the fast-food chain will soon start piping in the music of Beethoven, in a bid to tackle antisocial behaviour.

Frequenters of a branch of McDonald’s in Wales will soon have a symphonic accompaniment to their quarter-pounders and fries.

McDonald’s in Wrexham is set to introduce the music of Beethoven in an attempt to combat persistent issues with gangs of young people.

Classical music will be heard at the fast-food restaurant in north Wales from 5pm, following multiple reports of issues including an assault involving at least 20 people when staff were hit with coins.

North Wales Live reports that police inspector Luke Hughes said they had received “multiple reports... of one particular group of youths, that at times numbered 20-30, roaming between locations”.

“There was more than one allegation of assault, a fire extinguisher set off, signs and coins thrown at shop staff and younger children chased by this group,” he added.

The restaurant will also restrict its WiFi service in an attempt to deter the troublemakers.

McDonald's in Wrexham. Picture: Google

Hughes later said: “I also want to thank those businesses that I had written to earlier in the week. I had a great response, with some imposing entry conditions. 

“A well-known fast-food retailer will be playing classical music from 5pm in the evening, so unless we have some local and unruly Beethoven enthusiasts, it should discourage some issues.”

For more than a decade, McDonald’s and other fast-food chains have been opting for classical music to calm hungry patrons, relax those waiting for food and help tackle antisocial behaviour.

McDonald’s has previously said: “We have tested the effects of classical music in the past and played it in some of our restaurants as it encourages more acceptable behaviour.

“Typically, classical music would be played from early evening onwards and, in some cases, on certain nights in a small number of restaurants.”

A branch in Shepherd’s Bush, which had 71 reports of crime in or near the store in 2017, saw its crime rate fall significantly after classical music was introduced, according to the manager.

Atul Pathak, who operates several restaurants in the capital, said at the time: “Working together with the police and the local council in Shepherd’s Bush to help them with combating persistent antisocial behaviour, we thought that playing classical music at certain times of the day would help to set a different and calmer tone.

“It is working really well and has been positively received by many customers, so much so that we are giving real consideration as to where else we might introduce it.”

While McDonald’s Wrexham won’t be the first fast-food restaurant to use classical music to calm its potential customers, it remains to be seen whether the composer’s symphonies will help the branch achieve its desired outcome. They may be wise to steer clear of this rather glorious 10,000-person take on the ‘Ode to Joy’.

Listen to this 10,000-strong Japanese megachoir sing Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’

A smaller, but still immense, 5,000 strong choir in Japan sing Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’. Picture: Getty

By Sophia Alexandra Hall

@sophiassocials

 

Over a century ago, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony reached Japan in an unexpected way. Today, it’s one of their most celebrated pieces of repertoire, and there’s a very particular performance of it once a year we think you should see. 

When Beethoven wrote his Ninth Symphony, he probably had no inkling of the worldwide phenomenon the triumphant choral climax of his work would become.

The final movement of his final symphony, or as it’s more commonly called, ‘Ode to Joy’, has its vocal libretto taken from a 1785 German poet Friedrich Schiller of the same name.

The choral work’s lyrics are often associated with messages of freedom, hope, and unity, and when sung by a large chorus to Beethoven’s simple stepwise melody, have great power and resonance across the world.

And no performance is arguably more powerful than that of a choir totalling over 10,000 singers.

In Japan, every December, ‘Ode to Joy’ is sung all across the country, but the most notable performance takes place once a year, when 10,000 singers join together to sing the German composer’s most famed vocal work.

A performance like this can’t accurately be described any other way, than by listening. Watch it below...

This particular performance, recorded in December 2012, was conducted by Yutaka Sado – a Japanese conductor who studied under Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. 

Along with professional soloists, a smaller chamber choir and an orchestra, the remaining singers in the 10,000-strong choir are all untrained, or amateurs who wish to take part in the annual ‘Daiku’ (translated literally as number nine, in reference to Beethoven’s symphony).

‘Ode to Joy’ is sung by the Japanese choir in German, and the singers taking part in the event spend anywhere from between weeks and months preparing to sing in the original language.

It is a privilege to be chosen to sing as part of the 10,000-voice choir, as the chance to perform with the ensemble is oversubscribed every year. The first time the choir sang with over 10,000 members was during the coronavirus pandemic, when 11,961 voices joined virtually around the world to celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birth year.

But why Beethoven? Ode to Joy’s significance in Japan

How Beethoven’s vocal work arrived in Japan is a solemn story which originates during the First World War.

During this war, Japan and Germany were enemies, and approximately 1,000 German soldiers were captured from the German-occupied Chinese island of Qingdao, and taken to a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in 1914.

Subsequently, ‘Ode to Joy’ is said to have arrived in Japan via these German prisoners, who would sing the Beethoven masterwork while being held in Naruto’s Bando War Camp.

By 1918, the war camp had taken on more prisoners. And in July of that year, one German prisoner of war led an orchestra (made up of mostly handmade instruments) of 45 prisoners, and an 80-strong all-male choir, in a performance of the Ninth.

News of this concert spread across Japan, and by 1925, the first known performance of the Ninth by Japanese musicians was performed by students at the predecessor of the Tokyo University of the Arts.

Over 100 years since the Bando prison camp was destroyed, remnants of that first musical exchange remain in modern day Naruto.

A roadside station named the ‘Home of the Ninth’ stands in Naruto today, selling German sausages among the usual goods found in such stores. The building is notably constructed from the original parts and materials used in the prisoner-of-war camp.

A statue of Beethoven also stands nearby, erected in 1997 by German sculptor Peter Kuschel. Surrounding the statue are pictures taken at various anniversary concerts, marking the first performance of his Ninth in Asia in that prison camp in 1918.

Despite its solemn beginnings, the Ninth has become a staple of Japan’s performance repertoire. And with its themes of friendship, fellowship, and unity, it’s no wonder this choral work is still so widely performed all across the world today.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): Emperor Concerto

Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73 Piano: Johanna Hanikova Conductor: Lukas Klansky PKF Prague Philharmonia LIVE 15.3.2019 Bohuslav Martinu Hall, Lichtenstein Palace, Prague The PKF orchestra board kindly approved a request of Johanna Hanikova to use the recording of this concert "Beethoven #5" recorded on 15.3.2019 for promotional purposes, such as publication on Youtube.