May 7 was the day that Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony was given its world premiere in 1824, and May 7 of this year is the date that the Chicago Symphony Orchestra started making its 2014 performance of the work available online for free. Led by Music Director Riccardo Muti, the CSO’s performance was recorded on September 18, 2014 in Chicago’s Orchestra Hall; joining Muti and the CSO were the Chicago Symphony Chorus, prepared by Chorus Director Duain Wolfe, and soloists soprano Camilla Nylund, mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova, tenor Matthew Polenzani, and bass-baritone Eric Owens. The video includes comments on the work by Muti, CSO Second Trumpet John Hagstrom, and CSO Principal Timpani David Herbert. The video is available on-demand at cso.org/Beethoven9, RiccardoMutiMusic.com, and on the CSO’s social media channels including YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
Posted May 8, 2015
