This Sunday · Complete Listening: Dibes Youth Symphony Listening Program Beethoven's Symphony No. 9

This Sunday · Complete Listening DIBEISI Youth Symphony Listening Program Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 The first time human voice sounds in a symphony Not because he went mad, but because the times had changed 🗓️ August 16 (Sunday) 15:00 — 17:00 · DIBEISI Beijing Audio Hall THE WORK A work that redefined the symphony May 7, 1824, Theater am Kärntnertor, Vienna. After composing over thirty works in the symphonic tradition, Beethoven did something no one had ever done before—he wrote choral voices into a symphony. From then on, the symphony was no longer just a dialogue of instruments; it could sing, it could cry out, it could carry a proposition about all humanity. No.9 D minor · Op.125 "Choral" Premiered 1824 · Approx. 70 minutes · Four movements D minor with choral voices, Schiller's "Ode to Joy," approx. 70 minutes First Movement Allegro ma non troppo Emerging from chaos, the struggle and combat of fate Second Movement Molto vivace A perpetuum-mobile rhythmic engine, never tiring Third Movement Adagio cantabile The deepest stillness, alternating variations on two themes Fourth Movement Finale · Ode to Joy Voices enter, from a whisper to a hymn for all humanity CONTEXT Without these three things, there would be no Ninth Symphony Beethoven was not writing alone. Behind him were three material conditions changing the world: Brass valve technology — enabling brass instruments to play the full chromatic scale, suddenly expanding the symphony's range and expressive power Expansion of public concert halls — music moved from courts to citizens, and the orchestral forces of large symphony orchestras took shape accordingly The ideological impact of the French Revolution — "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" was not just a slogan; it gave Beethoven an unprecedented proposition: all humanity united together The Ninth Symphony was not a masterpiece dropped from heaven; it was a product jointly brought forth by technology, space, and ideas. Only by understanding these three things can you hear why this work had to exist. NOW IN BEIJING The National Centre for the Performing Arts recently staged the Ninth Just on July 26, the Beijing Symphony Orchestra performed the closing concert of the 2025-2026 season at the NCPA Concert Hall, featuring the complete Beethoven Ninth Symphony—conducted by Yang Yang, with the China Central Opera House Chorus providing the choral parts. One work, the same city, performed twice within two weeks—this shows the Ninth is not a "museum piece from textbooks," but a core repertoire piece in today's Beijing music scene. The NCPA has performed it; now let us come to understand it. LISTENING GUIDE Curator Wang takes you through these four moments 🌊 Opening of the First Movement: Creation from Chaos The open fifth intervals sound like the void before the Big Bang; the melody emerges little by little from nothingness—this is not a metaphor, it is Beethoven writing "creation from nothing" in notes ⚡ Second Movement: The Never-Stopping Machine The octave leaps in the timpani beat like a heartbeat; the whole movement is like a precision perpetual-motion machine. Listen for the brand-new power the brass displays thanks to valve technology 🕊️ Third Movement: The Quietest Power The slowest, most beautiful movement of the entire work. Two themes alternate, each variation deeper than the last. This is the calm before the storm 🔥 Fourth Movement: The Moment the Human Voice Explodes The first three movements are purely instrumental, until the Fourth—a baritone suddenly sings "O friends, not these sounds!"—this is the first time a human voice appears in symphonic history, and the entire rulebook was rewritten SPEAKER This session's guide Wang Wang Jiangtao Curator of DIBEISI Beijing Audio Hall A seasoned audiophile and classical music enthusiast. Under his stewardship, DIBEISI Beijing Audio Hall houses a flagship million-level Hi-Fi audio system and five themed exhibition halls, making it one of the few professional spaces in China capable of reproducing the live sound field of a symphony with top-tier audio equipment. In this session, Curator Wang will offer a complete guided listening and in-depth interpretation of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. DETAILS Event Information 📅 Time August 16 (Sunday) 15:00 — 17:00 📍 Venue DIBEISI Beijing Audio Hall Building 6, Beijing Music Industrial Park 🚇 Metro Line 7 · Heizhuanghu Station, exit and you're there 🚗 Driving Ample parking spaces within the park, convenient parking 🎯 Target Audience All members of the Idyllic Symphony Youth Public Welfare Orchestra, Group A and Group B 💰 Fee Free, public welfare event Idyllic Symphony Youth Public Welfare Orchestra × DIBEISI