The OMA – Orquestra de la Marina Alta presents this Sunday April 27th at El Poble Nou de Benitatxell an innovative and ambitious offer: the performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in its version for “Harmonie” (1816).
At 6:00 pm at Santa María Magdalena church, they will premiere this version, which met with the approval of the composer himself in the XIX Ciclo de Conciertos de Primavera of the town, to continue delighting the audiences of La Marina Alta in subsequent events.
With the programming of this work, the OMA symbolically begins the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the death of Beethoven (1827-2027), with the objective of taking his music beyond the great concert halls, making it sound throughout the region and bringing it closer to all audiences.
Harmonie’ (or ‘Harmoniemusik’) were wind ensembles that became very popular in central and western Europe, especially in the late XVIIIth and early XIXth century. Their sound, ideal for outdoor events, made them a common accompaniment for noble celebrations and other public events.
This version not only offers a new way of listening to one of Beethoven’s most celebrated symphonic works, but also connects with the historical tradition of the 19th century, in which these versions of great works allowed great music to be disseminated to communities that could not access the great cultural centres.
The concert is part of a cycle that reinterprets the concept of “Harmoniemusik” in a contemporary key, within the framework of concert studies and cultural democratisation. It is an opportunity to live a singular, close and deeply meaningful musical experience.
‘Poble Nou de Benitatxell is one of the places where we do an annual concert, which has not failed even in a pandemic, and we want to present this project here as a way of thanking the Council for its loyalty and support for our orchestra,’ said the conductor of the OMA, Francesc Estévez.
The orchestra conductor also highlighted the particularity of this version of the symphony, which “is one of the most exclusive”. «All of Beethoven’s great patrons had their Harmonie group and could listen to his music. At that time there were no record players, no Spotify, no YouTube, so when these upper social classes wanted to listen to music they needed an ensemble of musicians to perform it. In this case, of Beethoven’s nine symphonies, the only one made for these groups is the seventh».
As the Councillor of Culture, Jorge Pascual, pointed out, «we are very grateful to be able to have the OMA at El Poble Nou de Benitatxell because it is a reference in the region. We always support it because it is a way of listening to classical music and it reaches all audiences. We are delighted to be able to host the premiere of this project, which starts this year to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death».
