Description
EuroArts: Beethoven — Symphony No. 9 "Ode to Freedom" — Leonard Bernstein, Berlin 1989 (DVD)
Brand new! Factory packaged! As pictured! Buy with confidence!
Product Details:
- Product Type: DVD
- Brand / Label: EuroArts (Unitel)
- Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
- Work: Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125
- Conductor: Leonard Bernstein
- Soloists: June Anderson (soprano), Sarah Walker (mezzo-soprano), Klaus König (tenor), Jan-Hendrik Rootering (bass)
- Concert Date: 25 December 1989, Schauspielhaus Berlin
- Release Year: 2006 (this edition)
- UPC: 880242720382
- Catalogue Number: 2072038
- Genre: Classical / Symphony
Product Features
- Format: DVD 9
- Running time: approx. 94 minutes
- Picture format: NTSC, 16:9 anamorphic
- Sound: PCM Stereo / Dolby Digital 5.1 / DTS 5.1
- Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish
- Region: 0 (worldwide)
- Directed by Humphrey Burton
- Made in the EU
- Condition: Brand New, Factory Sealed
Overview
A few days after the Berlin Wall came down, Leonard Bernstein stood in front of an orchestra assembled from both sides of the old divide and conducted Beethoven's Ninth. The "Ode to Freedom" on this DVD captures that concert — 25 December 1989, in the Schauspielhaus of what had, until weeks earlier, been East Berlin.
Bernstein made one famous change to the score. In Schiller's text, he had the chorus sing "Freiheit" — freedom — in place of "Freude," joy. It was a deliberate gesture for the moment, and few performances of the Ninth carry the weight this one does because of it.
The forces are extraordinary. Bernstein drew musicians from the Bavarian Radio Symphony, the Dresden Staatskapelle, the Kirov Theatre orchestra, the London Symphony, the New York Philharmonic, and the Orchestre de Paris — the major powers of the divided world, playing together. Choral forces came from Munich, Berlin, and Dresden, with soloists June Anderson, Sarah Walker, Klaus König, and Jan-Hendrik Rootering.
A historic document for collectors of Beethoven, Bernstein, and anyone drawn to the music of that singular winter.
Interesting Facts
- Bernstein replaced "Freude" (joy) with "Freiheit" (freedom) throughout the finale, reasoning that the moment justified the change; it remains the performance's defining feature.
- The concert was performed twice that December — once in West Berlin on the 23rd and again on Christmas Day in East Berlin — to mark the fall of the Wall.
- The orchestra was deliberately international: players came from the two Germanys, the Soviet Union, the United States, Britain, and France.
- This was among Bernstein's final major recorded performances; he died in October 1990, less than a year later.
- The children's chorus came from the Dresden Philharmonie, joining adult choirs from Munich and Berlin.
- Television direction was by Humphrey Burton, Bernstein's longtime collaborator and biographer.
Track Listing
Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 is in four movements (Allegro ma non troppo / Molto vivace / Adagio molto e cantabile / Presto – "Ode to Freedom" finale). The booklet's exact track/chapter timings aren't legible in the photos — send a clear image of the track list and I'll add precise timings.
Publishers
A co-production of Unitel GmbH & Co. KG (Munich) and Bayerischer Rundfunk, with KCET New York / Video Music Productions and DDR Fernsehen. © 1989 Unitel; this edition © 2006 EuroArts Music International GmbH. Made in the EU.
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