DAILY DOSE of BEETHOVEN (May 3, 2020)
The Ninth Symphony
Thanks to all of our readers for sticking with the challenge of visualizing an entire 25-minute movement, that defies all existing characterizations! To have a concept of such a work as a whole, whether visual, aural, or both; is a blessing few enjoy, yet all deserve.
Theorists throw up their hands when trying to categorize this movement, and pronounce it "Free Fantasy Form." Today's episode is a bit longer, but we shall discover that the form of the movement is determined by none other than the central ideas in Schiller's poem, the Ode to Joy. Today we approach the climactic moment—the central idea!
In several previous posts, we have used the inimitable performances of Wilhelm Furtwangler. Today, we employ an excellent modern version conducted by Riccardo Muti, which also benefits from an ongoing English translation.
Let us resume where we left off in part 7. An instrumental double fugue begins at about 12:50 in this recording. A fork in the road is arrived at by 14:12, and Beethoven tests out different possibilities. At 14:41, the most famous statement of the Freude theme takes place, in full voice, and in 6/8 time. it is glorious! Yet, at 15:38, the music is again ripped off, and something strange begins.
The male voices sing in unison, in a slow, forceful, and declamatory way, on the words:
Seid umschlugen, Millionen.
Diesen Kuss der ganzen Welt.
Bruder, uberm Sternenzelt,
Muss ein lieber Vater wohnen.
(Be embraced, O ye millions!
Here's a kiss for all the World.
Brothers, above the canopy of stars,
A loving Father must surely dwell.)
Where does this come from? We discovered before that the Turkish March was new, but was also a transformation of the Freude theme. This is totally new, and different. It is not related to the Freude theme. However, It may be new to the symphony, but it is not new to the poem.
We have heard the succession of three verses of the poem. Yet, there is something missing. Between each verse, lies a four line section marked Chor, or chorus (see attached image below). The first Chor section is the 4 lines we just identified. How can you have a chorus in a poem? Are several people supposed to join in to read it aloud? Why did Beethoven wait so long to introduce it in the symphony?
Today we think of a chorus as an ensemble of singing voices both male and female, high and low. The chorus originated in Greek Theater and the word comes from the Greek word for “dance” (as does choreography). Several times in a play, the chorus would slowly dance across the stage, singing poetry, They would locate the actions in the play for the audience from a larger, historical view. Was that Schiller's idea in these Chor sections of the poem? In the introduction to his play, The Bride of Messina:—“On the Employment of Chorus in Tragedy”, Schiller explained his use of an ancient-Greek style chorus:
“The chorus leaves the narrow arena of the action, in order to make statements about the past and future, about distant times and peoples, about what is human in general, to draw the grand results of life and to express the teachings of wisdom.
“While the chorus brings life to the speech, it brings calm to the action—but the beautiful and high calm which must be the character of a noble work of art. The mind of the audience must maintain its freedom even amidst the fiercest passion.
“What the usual judgment tends to fault about the chorus, that it dissolves the illusion, that it breaks the force of the affects, is actually its highest recommendation... By holding the parts apart, and stepping between the passions with its calming reflection, it restores our freedom to us, which would be lost in the storm of affects.”
We do believe that Schiller had that conception of chorus in mind for the Ode to Joy, and that Beethoven understood it that way !
The female voices join in, and sing the second Chor section of the poem, which comes between the second and third verses.
Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?
Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt?
Such' ihn über'm Sternenzelt!
Über Sternen muss er wohnen.
(Do you feel Him near, O ye Millions?
Do you sense your Creator, World?
Seek Him above the canopy of stars!
Above the stars must he reside.)
At 18:54 in this recording Beethoven introduces an unbelievable tension that lasts for about 30 seconds. He is letting us know that the most important moment approaches. What will it be?
At 19:26 he begins his most important discovery, the great vocal double fugue! One fugue subject is a derivation of the Freude theme, and the other comes from the Seid umschlungen idea.
Beethoven had said that the composer must rise above the poet, and wondered how one could do that with Schiller’s perfect poem. So how does Beethoven rise above the poet? We cannot read two lines of a poem at the same time and be clear. We can, however, sing those lines at the same time, with great clarity. The poem can only alternate between the 8-line sections, and the 4-line "chorus" sections. In music can they be joined, joyously!
After this high point, Beethoven celebrates what has been accomplished. The only text from here on is the 8-line Freude verse, and the 4-line Seid umschlungen. They playfully alternate as the music rushes to a conclusion that does feel as though we had risen "above the stars."