Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 Fate Symphony | Christian Thielemann & Vienna Philharmonic

Four iconic notes: the opening of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 is one of the most recognizable motifs in music history. In 2010, Christian Thielemann conducted the “Fate Symphony” with the Vienna Philharmonic in the Wiener Musikverein.

00:00 Intro
00:50 I. Allegro con brio
08:31 II. Andante con moto
19:33 III. Allegro
25:09 IV. Allegro

“Da-da-da-daaa…” – with this legendary four-note motif, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 – aka the Fate Symphony – carved its place in music history. The nickname originated from Beethoven’s secretary and biographer, Anton Schindler. When he asked about the meaning of the opening motif, Beethoven is said to have replied: “This is the sound of fate knocking at the door.” Although this story is disputed, what remains undeniable is that Beethoven’s Fifth, premiered on December 22, 1808, stands as one of most celebrated works in classical music.

Anton Schindler was a shady character. Though he longed to be a close friend and confidant of Beethoven, the composer often dismissed him. After Beethoven’s death, Schindler took many of his manuscripts and notebooks. In his biography, he’s believed to have fabricated quotes from these writings and to have interpreted – or even created – events to align with his own perspectives and feelings.

Beethoven left little about his inspiration for Symphony No. 5, as no authentic commentary from him on the work survives. The symphony was written at a time when Beethoven was already suffering from severe hearing loss and tinnitus. His condition began in 1798 and led to near-total deafness sixteen years later. Though his piano career faded, he was by then firmly established as a respected composer in Vienna.

The first sketches of Beethoven’s Fifth date back to 1803, a time when he was still captivated by the ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. Rhythms and motifs from revolutionary music found their way into his work, and researchers suggest they likely inspired the symphony’s famous four-note opening. In France, Beethoven’s suspenseful Fifth, with its explosive finale in C major, isn’t called the Fate Symphony but the Chant de Victoire – a hymn to victory.
Around the same time, nature-loving Beethoven composed Symphony No. 6 – the Pastoral Symphony, or Recollections of Country Life. The contrasting themes of nature and peace, some scholars argue, suggest that the Fifth was not necessarily tied to a personal sense of fate. Yet, despite all the new research, the nickname Fate Symphony has endured.

In 2010/11, Christian Thielemann recorded all of Beethoven’s symphonies on DVD with the Vienna Philharmonic, including the Fifth. This recording was praised in the international press as a “new benchmark of Beethoven interpretation.”

Christian Thielemann is one of the most prominent conductors of our time. From 2015 to 2020, he was the Music Director of the Bayreuth Wagner Festival and held the position of Principal Conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden from 2012 to 2024. Starting in the 2024/25 season, he took on the role of General Music Director of the Berlin State Opera, succeeding Daniel Barenboim. Thielemann is regarded as a leading conductor of both Wagner and Beethoven.

The Vienna Philharmonic also has a special connection to Beethoven. At its founding concert in March 1842, fifteen years after Beethoven’s death, the program featured Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony. Some of the orchestra members had also performed in the 1824 premiere of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.

In 1918, conductor Felix Weingartner directed the first of sixteen Beethoven cycles in the orchestra’s history at the Vienna Musikverein. The most recent cycle, led by Christian Thielemann, saw the orchestra perform Beethoven’s symphonies on tour from 2008 to 2013 in Vienna, Paris, Berlin, Tokyo, and Moscow.

© 2010 Unitel

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