The program designed by maestro Gyorgy Rath in his first season as conductor of the Symphony Orchestra and dedicated to Beethoven continues to captivate lovers of “serious music.”
Yesterday afternoon’s concert was a resounding success thanks to the vigorous direction of Gyorgy, who, in just a few months, managed to leave his mark on an orchestra that needed it, awakening it from its slumber and helping it find its style.
Pom pom pom pooom. Pom pom pom pooom. Beethoven’s 5th Symphony is among the most famous works in the world.
During the Second World War, the motif became embedded in culture and politics. It was used by the BBC to announce clandestine broadcasts. As soon as listeners heard four timpani beats, three short and one long, they recognized the beginning of Beethoven’s 5th or – in Morse code – the letter V for victory. “No composer before Beethoven had ever invested a symphony with such a political resonance.”
The beginnings of this work were not the most favorable, however. We are in Vienna, on December 22, 1808, at the Theater an der Wien. Ludwig van Beethoven could hardly hear anymore and was to lead a very busy program with conducting and piano. The orchestra delivered a disastrous performance of the 5th Symphony in front of its composer, who was deaf and irritated.
If this symphony became famous, it is largely thanks to its highly recognizable opening. Since then, everyone has given their interpretation of these symbolic first notes.
An anthem to freedom, a revolutionary or romantic act, no one can say what Beethoven intended in those few measures that would become the most famous in the history of music.
