In 2020, the world marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven. The German composer is the most frequently performed classical composer worldwide and interest in his music has remained unabated for centuries. Maverick, rebel, visionary - he remains just as relevant today.

For this landmark year, the EBU underlined its traditional and key role in enabling Members, and their audiences worldwide, to access diverse high-quality musical content. With a series of curated concerts, there were multiple opportunities to rediscover, or even hear for the first time, the works of one of the world’s greatest composers. 

Highlights:

The Beethoven Collection – a curated selection of more than 100 concerts, operas and archive recordings from around the world and released at intervals to all EBU radio organizations.

The events featured some of the world’s biggest names in music, including such conductors as Daniel Barenboim, Carlo Rizzi, Sir Simon Rattle and Sir Mark Elder; ensembles like the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the Dresden Staatskapelle and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; and soloists such as Jonas Kaufmann, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Paul Lewis and Frank Peter Zimmermann.

In December 2020, to coincide with Beethoven’s 250th birthdate, a special anniversary gala concert was held in Bonn, Beethoven’s birthplace, with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Daniel Barenboim. This closing concert was also live-streamed. 

A unique audio sting was commissioned by the EBU from renowned Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho and recorded with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and its Chief Conductor Sakari Oramo. The 90-second piece, entitled Chimera, was inspired by Beethoven and broadcast on the radio around the world, as well as performed in concert by many radio orchestras. Listen to it here.

Asked why it was so important to celebrate this anniversary, Sakari Oramo said: “Beethoven for me means a radical, world-changing, amazingly strong character as a composer. He was also a great humorist, with a great sense for dramatics and for lyrical beauty. His compositions contain everything from life and from the world.” 

Kaija Saariaho adds: “He was a genius. His music remains very fresh, very human. I admire his innovation, his skills as a composer, often using similar musical forms but interpreting them differently every time."

Edward Blakeman, Head of Programmes, BBC Radio 3 and member of the EBU Music Group, said: “Kaija’s ‘Chimera’ is brilliant – a shimmering, multi-textured, mini-narrative inspired by Beethoven - and the more you hear it, the more details you find in it. This is something really distinctive!”

The EBU website was updated with new Beethoven content throughout 2020. 

Pascale Labrie is Head of Music at the EBU: “For decades, the EBU and its Members have shared great music, across all genres, effectively creating the world’s biggest, virtual concert hall, benefiting millions of listeners. Music has no frontiers. It can be enjoyed by everyone, everywhere, without restrictions of language, enabling people to explore new horizons. This sense of joining together is fundamental to our work. Every year, the EBU opens up the world of music through music exchanges that serve the interests and tastes of millions of listeners globally.”