Michael J. Lutch and Hilary Scott, Courtesy of the BSO

Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s recent cycle advocated for such a positive interpretation of the composer’s musical worldview. They concluded their two-week concert series by pairing Beethoven’s shortest and longest symphonies: the 8th and the choral 9th.

During its earliest seasons in the 1880s, the BSO programmed each of the Beethoven symphonies almost annually. Yet this 2025 cycle (postponed from 2020 due to the pandemic) was the first time since 1927’s centenary of Beethoven’s death that the BSO performed all 9 symphonies in consecutive order with one conductor — first Serge Koussevitsky and now Nelsons. (Though the orchestra has done complete cycles with several conductors, most recently in 2009.) While such milestones are not necessarily relevant for assessing the musical quality of a performance, the occasion encouraged an enthusiastic audience to pack into Symphony Hall.

Beethoven’s 8th symphony may seem genteel and unassuming compared to its larger successor, yet the piece is a miniature masterpiece of the symphonic form. While not as intense and daring as some recordings (Scherchen and Harnoncourt come to mind), the BSO’s rendition took a brisk approach, from the joyful opening theme to dramatic development section with string tremolos and Timothy Genis’s pounding timpani. The minuet was characterized by ample rubato, as the opening ländler theme started slowly and sped up with each sforzando beat. Nelsons brought out a chamber-music feel to the middle section trio with a restrained, stately clarinet solo from William R. Hudgins and horn duet, accompanied by cellist Blaise Déjardin’s triplet motif (as a solo, rather than divisi cello section). During the coda of the finale — featuring endless repetition of the tonic chord, a signature Beethoven move — Nelsons pushed forward a gripping accelerando and made punching gestures to bring the piece to an energetic close.

The 9th symphony similarly ebbed and flowed, with added dynamic and tempo changes heightening the sense of drama. The coda in the first movement featured an extended rallentando, as murmuring strings reinforced the funeral D minor variation march before a frightening return to the opening descending arpeggio theme.

In the second movement scherzo, Nelsons’s gestures brought out the longer melodic lines rather than just the famous repeated 3-note motif. Here, Genis’s commanding timpani introduced a vivid contrast with—sometimes at the risk of covering—the softer playing from the strings. Despite his propensity for taking Romantic adagios slowly, Nelsons moved the third movement along, emphasizing the waltz-like rhythms of the multiple variations. The conductor nevertheless relished the silences within the movement by adding a caesura before the startling fanfare interruptions.

Michael J. Lutch and Hilary Scott, Courtesy of the BSO

Nelsons also added an even longer pause between the recapitulation of the earlier themes before the finale’s “Ode to Joy” theme. Following the moment of silence, the double basses entered almost imperceptibly, repeating the famous melody even softer. This was Nelson’s most compelling decision of the evening, gesturing towards Beethoven’s atmosphere of catharsis.

Baritone Andrè Schuen’s call for unity started off with a powerful and clear “O Freunde.” Pointy pizzicato from the strings matched his sharp diction pronouncing that “all men are made brothers.”

David Butt Philip (who will also sing the role of Paul in the BSO’s performance of Die tote Stadt this week, as well as Florestan in the Met’s Fidelio later this season) was able to showcase the warm, rich timbre of his lower register but strained when reaching difficult high B-flats. Like Schuen’s diction, he emphasized each syllable in phrases like “Laufet, Brüder.” This produced a somewhat stilted rendition of Friedrich Schiller’s famous ode, though this may be an issue with Beethoven’s vocal writing — placing many eight-note rests after each beat in the Turkish March section — rather than Butt Philip’s technique.

Soprano Sara Jakubiak and mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford completed the quartet. While Jakubiak’s upper range stood out, Mumford and Butt Philip’s lower range were sometimes covered by the orchestra in the louder passages. The Tanglewood Festival Chorus, prepared by James Burton, performed admirably from memory. Here clear diction was necessary, emphasizing the cosmic radiance of the “starry canopy” under which “millions” unite.

While a Beethoven symphony cycle guarantees to attract audiences, the Boston Symphony Orchestra has undertaken surprisingly little commemorative initiatives of other major classical music anniversaries this season, aside from some upcoming Ravel in time for his 150th birthday. Other possible contenders — like Luigi Nono’s 100th birthday; Schoenberg, Ives, and Holst’s 150ths (not to mention Glière’s or Suk’s); or even Bruckner (whose works Nelsons frequently performs in Europe) and Smetana’s 200th — have not received the same treatment, though admittedly such anniversaries should not be the main vehicle for orchestral programming. Nevertheless, the recent “Beethoven and Romanticism” festival, with the symphonies presented alongside chamber concerts and masterclasses, was not only a welcome addition to the BSO season, but also a reminder of Beethoven’s enduring appeal to worldwide solidarity.

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