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A2SO: Beethoven 9

  • Hill Auditorium 825 North University Avenue Ann Arbor, MI, 48109 United States (map)

7:00 p.m. pre-concert lecture

Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor
with Jacqueline Echols, Freda Herseth, Scott Piper,
Stephen West, and UMS Choral Union
Shostakovich Symphony No. 9 in E-flat major

I’ve sung this piece quite a bit in my career and cannot remember the first time I sang it, however, I do remember it was chosen in North Carolina as the piece to sing for 911 commemorations that year and I sang it in with Rodney Qynkoop and the Durham Chorale and Symphony at Duke Chapel I believe as a musical moment of healing. It was quite a powerful way to commemorate the occasion of sadness and loss in our country.
— Louise Toppin

“Shocking! A chorus and soloists in a finale? It’s just never done!” Ah, but Ludwig van Beethoven was a revolutionary. He didn’t let that stop him from composing what maybe the most glorious – and most downloaded and Spotified – piece of music ever written. Symphony No. 9 speaks to our higher ideas and a message of joy, sung by a finely matched quartet of soloists who you’ll long remember. It’s a perfect pairing with Shostakovich’s homage to Beethoven. Without chorus or soloists, Shostakovich fills his work with hidden messages that intrigue listeners even today.

For more information, go to A2SO.

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April 13

Baroque Chamber Orchestra

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May 11

Pressenda Chamber Players Concert 5