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Article: Michael Tilson Thomas and a Chorus of Beethoven
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- September 18, 1988
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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We do not usually think of Michael Tilson Thomas as a choral
conductor, but one of his more memorable records is "Beethoven: Late
Choral Music," made for CBS in 1975. It included the (mostly choral)
incidental music to Kotzebue's play "King Stephen," Op. 117, the
"Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage," Op. 112, and three smaller but
significant works: "Bundeslied" (also published in Op. 112),
Elegischer Gesang, Op. 118, and "Opferlied," Op. 121b.
You can spend a whole life going to several concerts a week
without ever hearing any of these works in live performance, but the
reason is not lack of musical quality; the music dates from
Beethoven's final period when a strange greatness pervaded all ...