Beethovens Symfonie nr. 9 met Iván Fischer & Budapest Festival Orchestra

Beethoven's Symphony No. 9

If there is one sing-along piece in classical music, it is undoubtedly Beethoven's Ninth , and especially the final chorus. 'Alle Menschen werden Brüder' became the European anthem. This final chorus is unique in Beethoven's oeuvre. After his Eighth, Beethoven had nothing to report in the symphonic realm for twelve years. In the first three movements of the Ninth , he demonstrates a masterful command of the old forms—he sets the bar so high that Brahms, Bruckner, and many others buckled under it. In the final chorus, with a sweeping gesture, he throws all conventions overboard. The stone-deaf but visionary Beethoven throws the door to the musical future wide open three years before his death.

Iván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra

Last year, conductor Iván Fischer was awarded the Concertgebouw Prize for his exceptional contribution to the artistic profile of the Concertgebouw. He is a born artist, in the words of Director Simon Reinink: 'Averse to routine. Everything he touches turns into something new, as if it were being heard for the first time.' Once again, the Hungarian musical athlete brings his Budapest Festival Orchestra to Amsterdam, together with a choir of singers from all 27 member states of the European Union. By performing 'Alle Menschen werden Brüder' together, the final chorus of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony , they demonstrate the possibility of a peaceful international society.