10/10 The Choral Fantasia, Christus am Olberge

Here's a couple of less-often performed orchestral works by B.  I don't know why, they are as great as the piano concertos in my opinion.  Courtesy of Classicaltv.com...

Choral Fantasy in C minor Op.80 (1809).
This work is kind of a cross between a piano fantasia, a piano concerto and a choral work.  Beethoven practically threw it together for the finale of a concert since he felt premiering the 5th and 6th Symphonies "wasn't good enough".  Too humble, Ludwig.  Notice the theme from Ode to Joy?  This was such a good melody he recycled it for the 9th Symphony.  More on the Choral Fantasy at Wikipedia and www.lvbeethoven.com.
"This live recording features pianist Gerhard Oppitz and the Südfunk Choir, with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti."
I recommend watching in "fullscreen" by clicking the square button in the lower right.(20 min)



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Christus am Olberge (Christ on the Mount of Olives), Op.85 (1804)
"Beethoven's only oratorio ("Christ On the Mount of Olives"), featuring Alison Hargan, Manfred Jung, Matthias Holle, the Südfunk Choir, and the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti at the 500-year-old gothic Amanduskirche in southern Germany." (56 min)
Wikipedia entry.
Here's the text if you feel inspired to sing along...


Link