By: Youheng Zhong
Unless you live under a rock, you’ve probably heard of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony Finale, more commonly known as “Ode to Joy.”
The piece is more than a simple tune living in the back of everyone’s mind: it’s a supranational anthem that conveys a message both broad and welcoming: “All men become brothers.” It has been adopted by various individuals and groups and has been featured in everything from the Muppets to the film “Die Hard.” “Ode to Joy has appeared in so many places with so many different contexts, it’s become a universal tune. And you know how hard it is to get 8 billion people to all agree that something is really good!
What made this piece so famous?
When Beethoven wrote the piece 200 years ago he made sure that it was easy to sing and hard to forget. The piece is written in common time, four beats per measure, and for most of the song only one note per beat. Every note either goes up or down the scale, with no jumps. The final cherry on top? The whole piece is in an octave range, meaning even if you can’t stretch your vocal cords way high up like the sopranos or down low like the bass, you can still learn the song almost immediately.
Another reason “Ode to Joy” is so appealing to people is the unspecific nature of its message. The lyrics are adapted from a poem by Friedrich Schiller, an Enlightenment thinker who talked about ideals such as reason, democracy, and most importantly, joy. The lyrics in “Ode to Joy” talk about positivity in the future such as “all men become brothers” or “With a kiss for all the world.” There isn’t anything partisan or ideological about them, allowing “Ode to Joy” to be open to several totally different interpertations and be embraced/used by people across the globe in all sorts of places—the Olympics, political protests, TV commercials, the list goes on and on.
Beethoven also wrote “Ode to Joy” differently from most symphonies at the time, straying from the standardized classical structure. While classical music focuses on clear phrasing and technical displays, “Ode to Joy” more resembles the music from the Romance period (the period following the Classical period). Unlike Classical music, music from the Romance period isn’t really rigid in format and focuses on expressiveness, drama, and build-up. Beethoven still retains the energy from Classical music, but he added the expressiveness of Romance. These factors all made “Ode to Joy” a banger: new, strange, but sufficiently pleasant to the ear. And since people liked it, they shared it with their friends, and they shared it with theirs, and they shared it… Much sharing and two centuries later, everyone has heard of the exemplary masterpiece.
So, the next time you hear someone humming that familiar tune or a TV show blasting this nostalgic piece, now you know why it’s there. Not only will you be hit with nostalgia; you can also embrace its message—whatever your own interpretation—with the rest of the world.
Image Credit by Budgeron Bach