Cooperstown Joins World in Celebrating Beethoven’s Ninth
By LIBBY CUDMORE
COOPERSTOWN
Type “Ode to Joy” into the search engine of youtube.com and you won’t just find symphonies played in concert halls.
You’ll find singers in Hartford, Conn., and Ukraine, inside an IKEA store and on the streets of Hong Kong, in small chamber ensembles and groups of thousands. And in each one, the reaction is always the same. People pause and smile. Cell phones and cameras come out to record the moment.
It is this spirit that inspired Kerry Candeale’s film, “Following the Ninth: In The Footsteps of Beethoven’s Final Symphony,” which tracks the impact of Beethoven’s most revered composition throughout the world.
“The message of the Ninth is all people must be free,” said producer Greg Mitchell, a writer for The Nation and Huffington Post, and a former editor of Crawdaddy magazines. “The key word is freedom – brothers and sisters together, fighting oppression. It’s not just for entertainment.”
In Chile, it was used to fight Augusto Pinochet’s regime, and students sang during the Tianamen Square protests in 1989. And in March, half a million people gathered in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol to sing in protest of austerity cuts. Even punk singer Billy Bragg recorded a version with new lyrics, which he performs in the film.
And at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, May 16, following the film, the “Ode” will be performed by Ah! Coopella, Voices of Cooperstown and the Catskill Choral Society, among others, alongside a viewing of the film at the CCS Sterling Auditorium.
“The live music, even me discussing it, adds a lot to the program,” said Mitchell. “It will inspire people to come out and see it, not just say, ‘I’ll catch it when it comes out on DVD’.”
For the self-described “old rock-and-roller,” Beethoven was a relatively new discovery. “As you get older, you look for something new,” he said. “I was just so bowled over when I started listening, I got wrapped up in the music.”
He traveled around the country – and the world – to hear symphonies play the Ninth. “I went to the Berlin Wall and just stood there with the “Ode to Joy” running in my head,” he said. “It was quite moving.”
“The film not only covers the endurance of Beethoven’s Ninth, but also his story. “You get wrapped up in his wild, tragic story,” he said. “He was deaf when he wrote all his greatest pieces – it’s mind boggling.”
“Following the Ninth” has already received rave reviews from critics, including Bill Moyers, who called the film “beautiful and powerful.”
And in the spirit of brotherhood, the concert will benefit the Cooperstown Food Pantry. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors.
“Sometimes obsessions pay off,” said Mitchell. “Not just in money, but seeing communities get involved, come together, that’s what Beethoven wanted. And it’s been a great experience.”