VASILY PETRENKO
Ludwig van Beethoven 1770- 1827
Symphony No 9, in D minor, Op. 125, “Choral”
Johanni van Oostrum, soprano
Carmen Artaza, mezzosoprano
Maximilian Schmitt, tenor
José Antonio López, baritone
Cor de la Generalitat Valenciana
Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana
The climax to the symphonic season is the visit by the Russian
conductor Vasily Petrenko, chief conductor of the
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, who leads the OCV for the second
time, after his tremendous version of Rachmaninov's 2nd
Symphony last season, with Beethoven's 9th Symphony, the
“Choral”, the symphony of symphonies. It is the most important
score for symphony and chorus in the history of music, an
expression of an ideal for human progress. Beethoven ended his
symphonic career with his most majestic score of all, in a renewed
style and the incorporation of human voices into the orchestral
fabric to celebrate the human fraternity expressed by Schiller's
poem, sung here by the Cor de la Generalitat Valenciana.