The movement is set in the key of D minor and the tempo given is very fast (Presto). It begins with a loud and frantic fanfare before recapping the main themes of the previous 3 movements. It is as if the composer is sifting through and then discarding them, in search of something better.
That "something better" emerges soon afterwards with the main theme of Ode to Joy being played softly by the cellos. It is then repeated and built up until the rest of the orchestra is involved. Then suddenly, the frantic fanfare from the beginning returns to signal the end of the First Phase and introduce the vocalists.
Before I go on, there are two things to be aware of:
- Beethoven originally intended to include Ode to Joy in his Tenth Symphony, not the Ninth. You can read about it here. Even after including Ode to Joy in the final stages of the symphony's development, Beethoven still had some reservations. I guess we should thank God for changing Beethoven's mind. Remember, he died before starting proper work on the Tenth Symphony, so we may never have had the Ode to Joy in the first place!
- Schiller's original An die Freude poem (link here for the lyrics with translation) contains nearly 20 stanzas of verse and chorus! Beethoven fortunately chose only the first five stanzas or so for his purposes.
The chorus (except for the sopranos) makes its proper entrance when it echoes the last four lines of the first stanza in unison (Deine Zauber binden wieder, was die Mode streng geteilt...).
The rest of the soloists now join the baritone for the second verse and third verse, singing the verses as a quartet. The chorus (now including sopranos) echoes the last four lines of each verse, and then bring Phase Two to an end by repeating of the final line of the third verse (Und der Cherub steht vor Gott.... vor Gott... VOR GOOOOOTT!!!)
Then there is a brief silence before the Third Phase begins. The key changes to B-flat major and the time signature becomes 6 quavers per bar (6/8). The double bassoon heralds what music analysts call a "Turkish" march. If you listen carefully, you will recognize that the tune is actually a variation of the main theme.
Strangely and sadly, the image that comes to my mind as the march begins to play is instead that of a big Nazi parade. In a side note, those of you who've seen Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange will probably remember this music being used in the Ludovico Technique scene.
The tenor soloist now enters with the next stanza "Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen..." before being joined by Tenor I and II and the Basses. A brief musical interlude follows before the main theme returns in its original key of D major. The whole chorus launches into a rousing rendition of the first stanza (Freude, schöner Götterfunken...) and repeats the last four lines of the stanza before the Third Phase ends quite abruptly.
Strangely and sadly, the image that comes to my mind as the march begins to play is instead that of a big Nazi parade. In a side note, those of you who've seen Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange will probably remember this music being used in the Ludovico Technique scene.
The tenor soloist now enters with the next stanza "Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen..." before being joined by Tenor I and II and the Basses. A brief musical interlude follows before the main theme returns in its original key of D major. The whole chorus launches into a rousing rendition of the first stanza (Freude, schöner Götterfunken...) and repeats the last four lines of the stanza before the Third Phase ends quite abruptly.
The Fourth Phase marks the introduction of a new stanza and hence a drastic change. The time signature - previously 6/8 - turns into 3 minims per bar (3/2). The tempo slows to walking pace (Andante). The key signature becomes G major and the indicator of the mood is majestic (maestoso).
On the third beat of the first bar, the trombones and other low-pitch instruments give a one-beat cue for the male vocalists who boldly sing "Seid umschlungen, Millionen! Diesen Kuss der ganzen Welt!"
What follows, right up until the end of the Phase, is simply divine. To match the key lyrics in this Phase (Überm Sternenzelt muss ein lieber Vater wohnen), the music moves up into an emotional plane seldom matched anywhere else in music history. At the end of the above-mentioned lyric, in which the music has been climbing into a higher range to depict movement towards the heavens, the mood suddenly changes again as the final chorus (Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?) is introduced.
The key changes from G major to G minor. The mood becomes "devout" (as indicated in the score), and the expression becomes hushed. But slowly the music again rises, this time to an even higher plane than before, until it reaches it peak at the end of the Fourth Phase when the chorus quietly repeats the last line "Über Sternen muss er wohnen". This amazing moment, underscored by woodwinds, strings and timpani playing on a sustained chord, results in what I like to call "sublime suspense".
On the third beat of the first bar, the trombones and other low-pitch instruments give a one-beat cue for the male vocalists who boldly sing "Seid umschlungen, Millionen! Diesen Kuss der ganzen Welt!"
What follows, right up until the end of the Phase, is simply divine. To match the key lyrics in this Phase (Überm Sternenzelt muss ein lieber Vater wohnen), the music moves up into an emotional plane seldom matched anywhere else in music history. At the end of the above-mentioned lyric, in which the music has been climbing into a higher range to depict movement towards the heavens, the mood suddenly changes again as the final chorus (Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?) is introduced.
The key changes from G major to G minor. The mood becomes "devout" (as indicated in the score), and the expression becomes hushed. But slowly the music again rises, this time to an even higher plane than before, until it reaches it peak at the end of the Fourth Phase when the chorus quietly repeats the last line "Über Sternen muss er wohnen". This amazing moment, underscored by woodwinds, strings and timpani playing on a sustained chord, results in what I like to call "sublime suspense".
That suspense is broken with a burst of energy and a return of sorts to the main theme in the Fifth - and final - Phase. The time signature changes from 3/2 to 6 crotchets per bar (6/4). The key signature returns to D major, the original key of the main theme, and the tempo is marked as fast (Allegro).
The chorus sings a contrapuntal movement. In layman's terms, this is a complicated sing-off between two or more voices. The sopranos sing a modified version of the main theme with "Freude, schöner Götterfunken..." while the altos are singing "Seid umschlungen, Millionen..." before the male voices enter with more of the same. To the untrained ear, it sounds like chaos but, this being Beethoven, it is orderly chaos, madness with a method.
After a brief reintroduction of "Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?", and recapping of "Alle Menschen werden Brüder" to affirm the human brotherhood message, the rest of the Phase is a roller-coaster joyride (Freude, schöner Götterfunken!) as the chorus and orchestra go all-out to a triumphant ending.
Whew! This has turned into a not-so-brief synopsis. And I have barely scratched the surface of the genius of this masterpiece! I will leave my impressions for the next post.
SOLI DEO GLORIA
The chorus sings a contrapuntal movement. In layman's terms, this is a complicated sing-off between two or more voices. The sopranos sing a modified version of the main theme with "Freude, schöner Götterfunken..." while the altos are singing "Seid umschlungen, Millionen..." before the male voices enter with more of the same. To the untrained ear, it sounds like chaos but, this being Beethoven, it is orderly chaos, madness with a method.
After a brief reintroduction of "Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?", and recapping of "Alle Menschen werden Brüder" to affirm the human brotherhood message, the rest of the Phase is a roller-coaster joyride (Freude, schöner Götterfunken!) as the chorus and orchestra go all-out to a triumphant ending.
Whew! This has turned into a not-so-brief synopsis. And I have barely scratched the surface of the genius of this masterpiece! I will leave my impressions for the next post.
SOLI DEO GLORIA
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