Ode to Joy

Autograph manuscript

"Ode to Joy" (German: "An die Freude" [an diː ˈfʁɔʏdə], first line: "Freude, schöner Götterfunken") is an ode written in the summer of 1785 by German poet, playwright, and historian Friedrich Schiller and published the following year in Thalia. A slightly revised version appeared in 1808, changing two lines of the first and omitting the last stanza.

"Ode to Joy" is best known for its use by Ludwig van Beethoven in the final (fourth) movement of his Ninth Symphony, completed in 1824. Beethoven's text does not use the entirety of Schiller's poem, and reorders some sections. His tune[1] (but not Schiller's words) was adopted as the Anthem of Europe by the Council of Europe in 1972, and subsequently the European Union.

The poem

Schillerhaus in Gohlis

Schiller first wrote the poem when he was staying in Gohlis, Leipzig. In the year 1785 from the beginning of May till mid September, he stayed together with his publisher Georg Joachim Göschen in Leipzig and wrote "An die Freude" along with his play Don Carlos.[2]

Schiller later made some revisions to the poem which was then republished posthumously in 1808, and it was this latter version that forms the basis for Beethoven's setting. Despite the lasting popularity of the ode, Schiller himself regarded it as a failure later in his life, going so far as calling it "detached from reality" and "of value maybe for us two, but not for the world, nor for the art of poetry" in an 1800 letter to his long-time friend and patron Christian Gottfried Körner (whose friendship had originally inspired him to write the ode).[3]

Hans-Jürgen Schings,[4] Wolfgang Riedel[5] and Peter-André Alt[6] accentuate the influence of the pietistic theologian Friedrich Christoph Oetinger upon Schiller's philosophy of love. Reinhard Breymayer has found that Oetinger's former pastor, Philipp Matthäus Hahn, also had such influence upon Schiller. According to Breymayer's statement, Schiller's poem and particularly the verses "Brüder – überm Sternenzelt/ muß ein lieber Vater wohnen" ("Brothers, above the starry canopy/ There must dwell a loving Father"), are a reference to Hahn's kernel concept of The Fatherly Love of God.[7]

Lyrics

"An die Freude""Ode to Joy"

Freude, schöner Götterfunken,
Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken,
Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder
Was die Mode streng geteilt*;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder*
Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.

Wem der große Wurf gelungen
Eines Freundes Freund zu sein;
Wer ein holdes Weib errungen
Mische seinen Jubel ein!
Ja, wer auch nur eine Seele
Sein nennt auf dem Erdenrund!
Und wer's nie gekonnt, der stehle
Weinend sich aus diesem Bund!

Freude trinken alle Wesen
An den Brüsten der Natur;
Alle Guten, alle Bösen
Folgen ihrer Rosenspur.
Küsse gab sie uns und Reben,
Einen Freund, geprüft im Tod;
Wollust ward dem Wurm gegeben
und der Cherub steht vor Gott.

Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen
Durch des Himmels prächt'gen Plan
Laufet, Brüder, eure Bahn,
Freudig, wie ein Held zum siegen.

Seid umschlungen, Millionen!
Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt!
Brüder, über'm Sternenzelt
Muß ein lieber Vater wohnen.
Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?
Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt?
Such' ihn über'm Sternenzelt!
Über Sternen muß er wohnen.

Joy, beautiful spark of the gods,
Daughter from Elysium,
We enter, drunk with fire,
Heavenly One, thy sanctuary!
Your magic binds again
What convention strictly divides;*
All people become brothers,*
Where your gentle wing abides.

Who has succeeded in the great attempt,
To be a friend's friend,
Whoever has won a lovely woman,
Add his to the jubilation!
Indeed, who calls even one soul
Theirs upon this world!
And whoever never managed, shall steal himself
Weeping away from this union!

All creatures drink of joy
At nature's breast.
Just and unjust
Alike taste of her gift;
She gave us kisses and the fruit of the vine,
A tried friend to the end.
[Even] the worm has been granted sensuality,
And the cherub stands before God!

Gladly, as His heavenly bodies fly
On their courses through the heavens,
Thus, brothers, you should run your race,
As a hero going to conquest.

You millions, I embrace you.
This kiss is for all the world!
Brothers, above the starry canopy
There must dwell a loving Father.
Do you fall in worship, you millions?
World, do you know your creator?
Seek him in the heavens;
Above the stars must He dwell.

Revisions

The lines marked with * have been revised as follows:

Original Revised Translation of original Translation of revision Comment
was der Mode Schwerd geteilt Was die Mode streng geteilt what the sword of custom divided What custom strictly divided The original meaning of Mode was "custom, contemporary taste".[8]
Bettler werden Fürstenbrüder Alle Menschen werden Brüder beggars become brothers of lords All people become brothers

Ode to Freedom

Academic speculation remains as to whether Schiller originally wrote an Ode to Freedom (Ode an die Freiheit) and changed it to an Ode to Joy.[9][10] ". . . [T]he thought lies near that it was the early form of the poem, when it was still an 'Ode to Freedom' (not 'to Joy'), which first aroused enthusiastic admiration for it in Beethoven's mind".[11]

Beethoven's musical setting

Beethoven house (1821–1823) at the Rathausgasse 10, Baden bei Wien in Austria, where he wrote the Missa Solemnis and completed the 9th symphony "Ode to Joy"

The ode is best known for its musical setting by Ludwig van Beethoven in the final movement of his Ninth Symphony (completed in 1824), a choral symphony for orchestra, four solo voices and choir.

Uses as a theme song

The basic melody was adopted for the hymn "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee" (aka "The Hymn of Joy") by Henry van Dyke, as well as for the songs "A Song of Joy" by Miguel Ríos, and "Road to Joy" by Bright Eyes. The tune was also used for the national anthem of Rhodesia. It has been used in a number of other contexts: notably in The Beatles' second film, HELP!, Stanley Kubrick's 1971 film A Clockwork Orange and in the Die Hard film franchise, as well as the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion and the film, Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo. In 1996, it became the theme song for Triple H in the World Wrestling Federation until early 1998. A version of the song was used as the Everybody Loves Raymond theme song. Recently, it is also used in the game Peggle. An instrumental version of this song is used as theme of the UEFA EURO 2016 Qualifiers and 2018 FIFA World Cup European Qualifiers matches, branded as "European Qualifiers",[12] and since 2005 it is the Copa Libertadores official anthem.[13] It is also used as a closing theme for both the Summer Olympics and Winter Olympics television broadcasts on many networks. Classical radio station KUSC uses it as the official sign off for their pledge drive fundraising.

Over the years, Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" has remained a protest anthem and a celebration of music. From demonstrators in Chile singing during demonstration against the Pinochet dictatorship, Chinese student broadcast at Tiananmen Square, the concert conducted by Leonard Bernstein after the fall of the Berlin Wall and Daiku (Big Ninth) concerts in Japan every December and one after the 2011 tsunami.[14] It has recently inspired flashmob performances at public spaces by musicians in many countries worldwide, including Choir Without Borders's 2009 performance at a train station[15] in Leipzig, Germany, to mark the 20th and 25th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, Hong Kong Festival Orchestra's 2013 performance at a Hong Kong mall, and performance in Sabadell, Spain.[16] A 2013 documentary, Following the Ninth, directed by Kerry Candaele, follows its continuing popularity.[14][17] It was played after Emmanuel Macron's victory in the 2017 French Presidential elections, when Macron gave his victory speech at the Louvre.[18] Pianist Igor Levit played the piece at the Royal Albert Hall during the 2017 Proms.[19]

Other musical settings

Other musical settings of the poem include:

References

  1. ↑ The usual name of the Hymn tune is "Hymn to Joy" "Hymnary – Hymn to Joy". Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  2. ↑ History of the Schiller House
  3. ↑ The German text can be found at http://www.wissen-im-netz.info/literatur/schiller/briefe/koerner/1800/571.htm
  4. ↑ Cf. Hans-Jürgen Schings: "Philosophie der Liebe [Philosophy of love] und Tragödie des Universalhasses. Die Räuber im Kontext von Schillers Jugendphilosophie [Schiller’s youth philosophy]" (I). In: Jahrbuch des Wiener Goethe-Vereins, vol. 84/85 (1980/1981), pp. 71–95, here especially pp. 80 f. to Oetinger (ib., note 45, to Breymayer's research).
  5. ↑ Cf. Wolfgang Riedel: Die Anthropologie des jungen Schiller. Zur Ideengeschichte der medizinischen Schriften und der 'Philosophischen Briefe'. Würzburg 1985; esp. pp. 182–198: "Liebe gleich Schwerkraft. Bausteine zu einer Metapherngeschichte", pp. 198–203: "Theosophie", here esp. pp. 200 f. with note 242 to Oetinger and Detlev Clüver. Riedel mentions often Oetinger.
  6. ↑ Cf. Peter-André Alt: Schiller. Leben – Werk – Zeit. München 2009, vol. 1. 1759–1791), passim. Cf. especially vol. 1, p. 56 with note 54 on p. 676: "Karl Friedrich Harttmann, der ... in enge Verbindung mit Oetinger trat, trug seit 1774 im Rahmen des von ihm versehenen Religionsunterrichts Prinzipien der pietistischen Lehre an der herzoglichen Akademie vor. Daß sie Spuren auch beim jungen Schiller hinterließ, demonstriert seine Liebesphilosophie [philosophy of love]."
  7. ↑ Cf. Reinhard Breymayer: Erhard Weigels Schüler Detlev Clüver und sein Einfluss auf Friedrich Christoph Oetinger (1702–1782) [...]. In: Katharina Habermann, Klaus-Dieter Herbst (Ed.): Erhard Weigel (1625–1699) und seine Schüler. Universitätsverlag Göttingen, Göttingen 2016, pp. 269–323, esp. 315-323 to Hahn and Schiller's Ode. – Reinhard Breymayer: Astronomie, Kalenderstreit und Liebestheologie. Von Erhard Weigel [...] zu Friedrich Schiller, Johann Andreas Streicher, Franz Joseph Graf von Thun und Hohenstein, Mozart und Beethoven. Dusslingen : Heck 2016.
  8. ↑ Duden, vol. 7, Das Herkuntswörterbuch. Mannheim: Bibliographisches Institut. 1963. p. 446. ISBN 3-411-00907-1. The word was derived via French from ultimately Latin wikt:modus. Duden cites as first meanings "Brauch, Sitte, Tages-, Zeitgeschmack". The primary modern meaning has shifted more towards "fashion".
  9. ↑ W. Kubacki, "Das Werk Juliusz Slowackis und seine Bedeutung für die polnische Literatur", Zeitschrift für Slawistik, Volume 5, Issue 1 (Jan 1960)
  10. ↑ Das "Alle Menschen werden Brüder", das Schiller in seiner Ode an die Freude (eigentlich Ode an die Freiheit) formuliert,... - Alexander Görlach, "Der Glaube an die Freiheit", Debatte, 04.08.2010
  11. ↑ Thayer, A. W.(1817-97), rev and ed. Elliot Forbes. Thayer's Life of Beethoven. (2 vols. 1967,1991) Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 895.
  12. ↑ UEFA European Qualifiers TV Intro on YouTube
  13. ↑ Intro Copa Santander Libertadores 2010 on YouTube
  14. 1 2 Daniel M. Gold (October 31, 2013). "The Ode Heard Round the World: Following the Ninth Explores Beethoven's Legacy". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 Sep 2014.
  15. ↑ "Video of flash mob – Ode to Joy sung at Leipzig train station (8 November 2009)". You Tube. Dosenlicht. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  16. ↑ Megan Garber (9 July 2012). "Ode to Joy: 50 String Instruments That Will Melt Your Heart". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
  17. ↑ "Beethoven's Flash Mobs". Bill Moyers. November 14, 2013.
  18. ↑ Nougayrède, Natalie (8 May 2017). "Macron’s victory march to Europe’s anthem said more than words". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
  19. ↑ "EU anthem played at Proms' first night". BBC News. BBC. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
  20. ↑ Otto Erich Deutsch et al. Schubert Thematic Catalogue, German edition 1978 (Bärenreiter), pp. 128–129
  21. ↑ "Ode to Joy – sung at Royal Albert hall (London)". British Christian Music Programme. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 Council of Europe. "The European anthem".
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