IIRC the speed of the 9th symphony is somewhat controversial because what markings we have on original sheetmusic are significantly faster than it’s normally played.
Symphony music in general is going to vary a decent bit depending on what bpm(s) the conductor is choosing.
Any decent conductor is going to to vary the beat based on how long it takes for sound to fill the venue in question. Beethoven’s choices for the music halls in Vienna might have made sense then, but not so much today.
One of the things that’s always annoyed the conductors that I’ve worked with is that we always ignore the dynamics in his music. Beethoven’s markings are expressive, subtle. And we always play his stuff louder than indicated.
I’d like to think it’s a really clever question about making people verify what’s written before them, rather than taking everything at face value and absolute fact.
But it’s still wrong, though, as the 9th is about 70 minutes.
There’s even a myth saying that the 9th was the determinant for the length of the original CD.
That’s how long it usually takes since usually it’s played with about 200 players
Exactly
IIRC the speed of the 9th symphony is somewhat controversial because what markings we have on original sheetmusic are significantly faster than it’s normally played.
Symphony music in general is going to vary a decent bit depending on what bpm(s) the conductor is choosing.
Any decent conductor is going to to vary the beat based on how long it takes for sound to fill the venue in question. Beethoven’s choices for the music halls in Vienna might have made sense then, but not so much today.
One of the things that’s always annoyed the conductors that I’ve worked with is that we always ignore the dynamics in his music. Beethoven’s markings are expressive, subtle. And we always play his stuff louder than indicated.
I’d like to think it’s a really clever question about making people verify what’s written before them, rather than taking everything at face value and absolute fact.
Yeah, I’m glad we got the length handled. Those CDs that looked like a sub sandwich were so awkward to handle…