Beethoven Project: Pre-Concert Talk With Dr. Marie Sumner Lott

About

The symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven have long been considered the heart of the orchestral repertoire. They epitomize the collaboration inherent in great orchestral playing, bringing together many diverse voices to express universal human experiences and emotions. In this series of pre-concert talks, Dr. Marie Sumner Lott explains how Beethoven and his generation introduced new approaches to writing for the orchestra in works that continue to serve as a foundation for music in today's movies and TV shows, video games, and concert music.

Beethoven's Fifth Symphony may be his most iconic. From its earliest performance in 1808, the symphony made a powerful impression as an expression of an individual's perseverance to meet the inexorable demands of Fate. The Second Symphony, on the other hand, is less frequently performed and therefore unfamiliar to most audiences. But this often overlooked work is the first of Beethoven's mature "middle period," or Heroic, compositions and the first symphony that shows its composer stretching the boundaries of the genre. In this pre-concert talk, we'll explore the connections between these two symphonies and their very different expressions of Beethoven's personal and public persona in the first decade of the 1800s.

This event will take place in the Event Room at the Woodruff Arts Center. The Event Room is located on the 2nd floor of the Memorial Arts Building across from Atlanta Symphony Hall.

This event is free for all classical performance ticket holders.

Learn more about the Beethoven Project