BEETHOVEN 2020 CELEBRATION: BEETHOVEN'S FIRST AND SECOND SYMPHONIES

NATHANIEL STOOKEY

Commission
BEETHOVEN

Symphony No. 1 in C Major
BEETHOVEN

Symphony No. 2 in D Major
HANNAH LASH

Commission
KRZYSZTOF URBAŃSKI CONDUCTOR

The ISO honors the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth by holding a celebration that will span a whole year, conducted only by Music Director Krzysztof Urbański. Beethoven forever changed the landscape of classical music, and to recognize that legacy, the ISO commissioned nine composers to write new pieces to be paired with each of the nine Beethoven symphonies. The celebration begins in January with three weekends dedicated to the first give Beethoven symphonies and other well-known works. The 2019–20 season comes to a close with all five Piano Concertos and Missa Solemnis, before the remaining four symphonies are performed in the fall of 2020.

The Beethoven 2020 celebration opens with two new commissions and the first two symphonies Beethoven composed. The First Symphony, written at the height of his classical prowess, came at the dawn of a new century. It was praised as an original masterpiece by his contemporaries in 1800 and shook-up the expectations of what a symphony should be. The bright and vibrant melodies of the Second Symphony may have brought comfort to Beethoven at a time when he was feeling a sense of despair.