muSiC AT EmorY ConCErT SEriES - Arts at Emory - Emory University

program
hymn for nations united richard Prior
2
(b. 1966)
Symphony no. 9 in D minor, op. 125 Ludwig van Beethoven
Allegro ma non troppo e un poco maestoso (1770–1827)
Molto vivace
Adagio molto e cantabile
Finale: Presto
maria Valdes, soprano; Tabitha iwamoto, mezzo soprano;
Bradley Howard, tenor; Jason Hardy, bass
with the Emory university Chorus
from the podium
on behalf of the hundreds of Emory university students and the faculty and
staff who have had the distinct pleasure of calling this extraordinary space their
artistic home for the past ten years: a very warm welcome to this evening’s
celebratory performance. much has been written—articles, dissertations, and
entire books—on Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. it is a truly iconic work in the
canon of western art music and so clearly foreshadows other great works by
compositional titans such as Johannes Brahms and gustav mahler. This music,
in particular the choral Finale, has graced occasions that are veritable turning
points in human history such as german reunification and the tearing down
of the Berlin wall; it is the anthem for the European union; it is the consistent
cultural lightning rod for the universal themes of unity that are celebrated in
Johann friedrich Von Schiller’s text.
This is also the tenth anniversary of the premiere of the hymn for nations
united, premiered at The Hague, netherlands, and graciously selected for
inclusion this evening by Eric nelson as w. H. Auden’s poem dwells on not
dissimilar subject matter.
This performance of Beethoven’s work is both a testament to the meteoric
rise of the arts nurtured in this space and to Emory’s outward and visible
commitment to that mission. As we celebrate the previous ten seasons, may
this evening also be a foreshadowing of the decades to come.
—Richard Prior