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Directly from the VSO Press Release:

Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 ‘Ode to Joy’

Vancouver, BC – Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 was his final complete symphony, and arguably the greatest piece of music ever written. The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra presents this epic piece along with Beethoven’s Ah, Perfido! and Fidelio: Overture on January 2nd and 4th at 8pm at the Orpheum Theatre. Maestro Bramwell Tovey conducts a concert that features soprano Joni Henson, mezzo-soprano Norine Burgess, tenor Michael Colvin, baritone Greg Dahl and the Vancouver Bach Choir.

Truly one of the most profound creations of the human mind, Beethoven’s Ninth is always fresh and current, and always the most inspiring, uplifting and joyful concert experience one can hope to have. The Ode to Joy also makes a particularly significant prelude to Vancouver’s 2010 Winter Olympic Games, and rings in the new decade with a message of hope, joy and brotherhood.

Composed over a ten-month period in 1823/1824, the Ninth was Beethoven’s last symphony, a genre he had not written in for ten years. And as much as the Ninth is seen as being revolutionary, and in many ways it is, much of the work harks back to styles and influences of Beethoven’s past. Even the famous final melody was an earlier creation, dating to 1794 in the guise of a song called ‘Gegenliebe’ (Mutual Love), then used again by Beethoven as the principal theme of the 1808 ‘Choral Fantasia’ before finding its apotheosis as the choral finale of the Ninth. The truly revolutionary aspect of the Ninth was the addition of solo vocalists and a choir to the final movement. This had not been done before to any effect, and changed music forever. The choral finale of the Ninth is also no mere added bauble – it brings the work together with Beethoven’s musical setting of Frederick Schiller’s ode, ‘To Joy’, a poem Beethoven had long desired to set to music (in fact, it seems Beethoven did manage to set the entire poem to music as he wanted to, but the work was tragically lost). The aggressive, operatic choral writing adds weight and brilliance to the conclusion, giving the words a profound credibility.

The Ninth is, in a very real sense, a musical and metaphorical journey, the centerpiece of which is a struggle for D minor to find its way to D Major, reflecting a very human struggle to overcome the troubles of the world with peace, and enter into the fields of Elysium. D Major ultimately finds its way, after being thwarted and parried and teased throughout, bursting forth triumphantly in the final movement in stunning fashion, heralding the arrival of the people into Elysium. The choral finale is of course the most famous part of the piece, and rightly so – it is a magnificent statement of hope, happiness and friendship, as well as a powerful, dramatic and joyful end to a musical journey, a musical career, and, in many ways, a musical life.

CONCERT INFO

PricewaterhouseCoopers Masterworks Silver Series

Saturday and Monday, January 2 & 4, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Beethoven’s Ode to Joy

Bramwell Tovey, conductor

Joni Henson, soprano

Norine Burgess, mezzo-soprano

Michael Colvin, tenor

Greg Dahl, baritone

Vancouver Bach Choir

Beethoven         Fidelio: Overture

Beethoven         Ah, Perfido!

Beethoven         Symphony No. 9 in D minor

Directly from the Opus Bar and Elixir Bistro Press Release:

OPUS AND ELIXIR RING IN 2010 WITH OLD HOLLYWOOD STYLE

Glitz and Glamour are on the New Year’s Eve Menu at Yaletown’s Chic Boutique Hotel

(Vancouver, BC) December 18, 2009 - OPUS Hotel Vancouver and Elixir infuse New Year’s Eve with Old Hollywood glamour. On December 31st, OPUS and Elixir Bistro roll out the red carpet and invite guests to dine in style, sip on bubbly and enjoy live entertainment. An affair that is not to be missed.

The evening begins in your stylish guestroom with a champagne toast to the new year. Ladies, slip into your glittery frocks and sky-high heels, gents don your most devilishly handsome duds, then venture downstairs to the glamorous and chic Elixir Bistro, where Executive Chef Don Letendre awaits with a luxurious four-course menu. The fun continues far beyond midnight in OPUS Bar, where you’ll enjoy OPUS hospitality, live entertainment, a bubbly toast and canapés to satisfy those après midnight munchies — the perfect recipe to welcome 2010. On New Year’s Day, a forgivingly late checkout invites you linger under the covers and ponder those new pesky resolutions. The New year’s Eve Package is priced at $499 plus taxes and gratuities for two people.

Those who would like to dine at Elixir Bistro and move on to another party may be seated early and savour Chef Letendre’s classic, sophisticated three-course menu. The first seating is 5:30pm – 7:00pm and is priced at $40 per person plus applicable tax and gratuity. Guests who are attending dinner, as well as the countdown celebration in OPUS Bar, will dine on a four-course menu and enjoy a glass of bubbly, canapés after midnight and live entertainment. The second seating begins at 8:30pm and is priced at $75.00 per person plus applicable tax and gratuity.

OPUS Bar’s countdown celebration includes bubbly, live entertainment and canapés after midnight. The festivities begin at 9pm and tickets are $45. Dress to impress in vintage glamour.

Tickets and reservations are available at Elixir Bistro 604.642.0557 or
 contact Jessica Dunn at jdunn@opushotel.com or 604.694.2137.