Götterfunken

“Friends, not these tones” is the phrase in Friedrich Schiller’s Ode to Joy, which of course did not refer to music, but to the disharmony among people, peoples, and nations. Ludwig van Beethoven understood his “Ninth” as an appeal to the divided Europe of his time, as he set Schiller’s text selectively and according to his own ideas in the last movement of his 9th Symphony: “Embrace the millions!”. With this, he broke the orchestral form of the symphony genre towards a vocal-symphonic work concept. A willful step! This willfulness was part of Beethoven’s character traits, without which we would not even be able to enjoy this magnificent piece of cultural history today! The musical direction by chief conductor Vassilis Christopoulos brings together the Graz Philharmonic, the Choir and Extra Choir of the Graz Opera, as well as the singing of the two ensemble members Neira Muhić and Wilfried Zelinka, who are joined by Marjukka Tepponen and Jörg Schneider, both of whom are also in Graz at the same time for rehearsals for the new production of Strauss's Elektra.

Music transcends the boundaries of the stage...

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 9 in D minor op. 125

Cast
Musical Direction: Vassilis Christopoulos
Soprano: Marjukka Tepponen
Alto: Neira Muhić
Tenor: Jörg Schneider
Bass: Wilfried Zelinka
Graz Philharmonic, Choir of the Graz Opera, Extra Choir of the Graz Opera

Tickets: are available online at ticketzentrum.at as well as at the Ticket Center, Kaiser-Josef-Platz 10, 8010 Graz.

Public Accessibility: Tram 1, 7 I Stop: Kaiser-Josef Platz/Opera