This classic piece as we know it today, was the last piece that Ludwig Von Beethoven wrote. When he wrote this piece, he was 100% deaf and in ill health. During the premier performance of his 9th Symphony, which he conducted – accurately – by the way – he kept conducting even when the piece was long finished. His first violinist turned him around to face the audience who gave Beethoven a very long and loud standing ovation. He heard none of that. However, he could see their faces and feel their adulation and appreciation of his work.
He was the first to introduce a choir singing in a Symphony. Choirs and congregations have continued to sing this magnificent piece for just under three hundred years!
I combine this masterpiece with Handel’s Joy to the World. Isaac Watts wrote the lyrics to Joy to the World along with my favorite organ composer, Gordon Young, using his Prelude in C to bring this medley together. I hope you enjoy hearing it as much as I enjoy playing it!
The Lightbourne Group 