Andre Rieu, "All Men shall be brothers" (Ode to Joy)

[robcas631]

There is no other way. All men shall be brothers. Without conflict.

[missbethanthomas]

I love him I wish he would do a duet with Gianluca Paganelli

[Kwanelauda]

He is a master of the show. But we always should know the great activities and amazing work (many times ignorated) from the great consolidated orchestras, theaters, etc. If we don't know it doesn't the best ones (not always the most known ones) it doesn't mean that they haven´t done something, of course.

We must know and to speak just after that.

[SunVoyager1]

This is the perfect storm of videos. The famous music and vocals chosen by Beethoven for the finale of his 9th symphony. Ultimate production, converting a square in Tuscany, into a concert hall. Astoundingly good singers. The only minus is a plus ...those 2 girls can produce such an epic vocal performance while looking like they are snoozing through it. Like somebody running a 4 minute mile without breaking a sweat and with a calm expression on their face.

[simmo303]

However it's done, it's the the most glorious tune yet composed.

[VocallysQuarteto]

listening Carmen Monarcha and Carla Maffioletti makes me feel proud to be brazilian...

[humanist7117]

Why do so many singers look so serious when they are singing about joy?

[DeathDragon32]

I agree who else could bring so many people together in one place and in perfect peace, he has acheived what politcians find it almost impossible to do, and he does it worldwide,And anyone that criticises him should think on, he includes everyone in his concerts not just the few upper classes

Jo Pollard 25/6/2011

[wjmortician]

Love this song. Does anyone know, is the blond soloist on the right, married to Andre Rieu's son?

[KumoKojiki]

i wanna sing like this too !

[jeferson803]

tinha que ser duas solistas brasileiras...

[csmiffy1]

Lighten up you lot, if I am lucky enough to have a cheap bottle of wine from the supermarket, I enjoy it for what it is ,and don't worry that a better bottle can be had elsewhere.

This is good entertaining stuff, and those girls have brilliant voices. I feel sure that Mr Beethoven would have been pleased to see and hear it. Can you sing like that and smile at the same time ? I doubt it

[TtOoUgGgUuYy]

@csmiffy1

well said

[JohnnyJenkem]

They look bored because they're listening to a metronome, not Rieu. This guy cant even air-conduct convincingly. There are recordings of many genuinely great conductors doing this on Youtube (Furtwangler, Klemperer, Toscanini et al).. please do not deprive yourselves by thinking that this canned dreck is Beethoven.

[Scotty1137]

@JohnnyJenkem I'm sure most people know that Andre Rieu is not the best musician nor the best conductor, but tell me one conductor or musician in his genre that has accomplished what he has. Andre Rieu has done more for classic and operatic music than anyone( period) He also performs with great love and joy in his heart, its easy to criticize greatness, from your mediocre armchair.

[TtOoUgGgUuYy]

@Scotty1137

100% true

[robcas631]

@Scotty1137 I disagree....... I think Reiu is just starting!

[LaserBeam002]

@JohnnyJenkem So you think you know enough to critize Andre Rieu? Tell me how many 20,000, 30,000 or greater seat stadiums have Furtwangler, klempere and Toscanini sold out? From what I have read most of the large orchestras around the world would have folded long ago IF it had not been for private grants and government hand outs to keep them going. And why? THEY ARE BORING. They very little appeal to young people and to the masses at large. You may be a music elite but the masses have the money

[BedBugAcres]

@LaserBeam002 There's a difference between being a musical elite versus a musical elitist. JohhnyJenkem is the latter for sure, and almost sure NOT the former.

[BedBugAcres]

@JohnnyJenkem Funny to hear the words "canned dreck" coming from someone who has nothing better to offer than a canned criticism. Maybe if you had a mind of your own, you'd be able to pry it open just enough to let a LITTLE light in.

[jhofmann33]

@JohnnyJenkem Andre Rieu brings classical music to all people, just as Bill gates brings the graphic interface to all people. Some love them. Some do not. Both are great for what the do.

[meatsmith]

@JohnnyJenkem Go form your own orchestra. sore loser

[Metals999]

@JohnnyJenkem Agreed 100%.

[toni4branti]

Ode To Joy ... new version

/watch?v=9vXulvax7Hc

[LeconsdAnalyse]

Beautiful!

[Emilymourabrum2009]

carla Maffioletti e Carmen são simplesmente demais!!!

Cantam mesmo!

[tokayhigh13]

hahha macbook recording scotty? lol the soprano look tired and exhuasted lol like they can fall asleep right there xD and the composer looks like beethoven himself xD

[paulostroff99]

Lovely!

[MrDakota2552]

Always a beautiful song and they do a great job with it. Quality of the post is a little off, but still beautiful.

Loved the expression on Carla's face at around 2:39>

[jomagoma86mm]

Me gusta más la versión de los muppets con el mimi!

[ensayers]

good singers but they do look really fed up

[joeoli1]

I am not an expert on classical music, I listen if something catches my interest. I liked it but the two singers at the front looked bored, like it was just a "job". The backing vocolists looked more interested.

Its just MY opinion (and not a classicly trained one either lol). Still good though

Thankyou for sharing

5*****

[sandiek]

As much as I love this song and could listen to it over and over, I don't think it's possible for them to look any more bored. Actually, wait...the Dublin one was.

[Elak666b]

Yea, it's german

[skoalboy]

Carla Maffioletti is absolutely beautiful and has an amazing voice.

Does anybody know where I can get the lyrics to this rendition? What language is being sung here -- it sounds like German.

[Hannahorse715]

@skoalboy wikipedia

[bravazon]

Es como traer un poco del pasado al presente, asi nosotros podemos atisbar en sus conciertos, como era la época cuando esos maestros de la música vivian.

[okebaram]

The description is errant lol. I've seen a couple of vids and Carla Malfioletti is NOT a mezzo, in fact she is THE soprano among all the 3 sopranos that this guy used a lot, and naturally she is singing the higher part here too!

[Annemeraude]

De magnifiques voix pour cet hymne à la joie! Merci! Amitiés! Anne

[Moondyne1]

Its about JOY ffs!! The blond looks like she is the way to a funeral!!!

[okebaram]

The highest sopranos are so freaking high

[Jemmer1000]

it's supposed to be basso

I know I know

Himmlischer dein Heiligtum!

[questcequevousvoulez]

Carla Mafioletti is NOT a mezzo-soprano. Just so you know :')

[hijlaa]

She is alto, right?

[okebaram]

No, she is a stratosphere soprano lol

[Buckaroo543]

ianuus, I'll bet that if you were at this concert, you wouldn't be able to find one person that didn't think that they performed this song in an outstanding manner. I just saw him in concert this past weekend, and it was fabulous. I guess some people are just meant to try and demean and downgrade people and things that overshadow their miserable lives.

[okebaram]

Relax. He just expressed a geniune opinion which EVERYONE is titled to. That something can be improved on does not mean one is saying it wasnt amazing. There is nothing that cannot be improved on. This guy's music is awesome otherwise I wouldn't be here at all cause I dont really like classical. But he uses 3 of his sopranos for all the lead parts and im sure some songs could sound even better if altos sang the alto solos & tenors sang the tenor solos. In case tho, the leads are high

[ianuus]

He takes something beautiful in classical music and makes a crappier version of it. He's not even being creative - he's just dumbing down classical music so that people who enjoy the simple, watered down form of pop music can listen to his bastardisations, and feel high-class and intelligent.

I have not been to an Andre Rieu concert. But likewise I doubt you've ever been to a classical music concert, or even listened to the whole 9th symphony. Your knowledge on the subject is very incomplete.

[Buckaroo543]

If you weren't a bore and a snob, and self admittedly ignorant of his concerts, your comments might actually mean something. Otherwise I stand by my original comment-he overshadows your miserable live.

[ianuus]

Oh, and reading comprehension is one of the basic signs of intelligence. You seem to lack it.

[Buckaroo543]

And you, whatever you are, are just an ass. Please refrain from educating me anymore, moron.

[ianuus]

I'd say that you are more snobbish and pretentious than me. It seems to me that you listen to this piece, then make overblown and quite exaggerated comments on how beautiful everything is, how wonderful the music is, in an attempt to seem high-class and musically sensitive, even when it is a mere shadow of its original self. At least when I praise Beethoven's 9th, I praise it with the truth of its glory; when you praise Rieu's version, you praise it out of ignorance and pretention.

[nalumx01]

@ianuus Carmem vc é linda, é Brasileira e famosa porque merece! não ligue para comentarios babacasm de pessoas emcompetentes invejosas, saiba linda só no Brasil vc tem 190milhões de fãs, quantos serão no mundo? beijo linda o Brasil te ama e tem orgulho de você.

[ianuus]

Indeed.

[ianuus]

The use of only 2 soprano soloists at the start makes the piece lose a lot of its eloquence and harmony compared to the original, where Beethoven weaved a net of beautiful melody and countermelody through the use of the 4 SATB soloists. The finale loses the string countermelody and overall rhymic elements from the other instruments, leaving it ponderous and heavy as opposed to uplifting and glorious. Overall a poor imitation of the ninth.

[FUKENGRUVN]

Completely agree.

[okebaram]

I agree.

[sstuddert]

@ianuus The more I watch this, the more I am convinced that this catastrophe is no mere consequence of inability but, rather, a direct, conscious, and mystifyingly contemptuous assault on the great master.

Jonathan Swift once wrote "When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him."

There is no other instance I know of where this statement can be applied with more accuracy than in this poor excuse of an arrangement.

[Kuoted]

The Sopranoes are beautiful.

[r3volution4eva]

haha whoeva recorded is using mac os x

[Jeff55369]

what makes you think that?

[r3volution4eva]

notice how the person who recorded it is changing the volume on the computer from 0:08 - 0:12 that volume graphic is used on mac os x

[Jeff55369]

ahh nice, i didn' t notice that until you pointed it out. :)

[danielfahtcosta]

E uma destas solistas e do Brasil ^^

Pena que ninguém nem conhece ela aqui ... um verdadeiro absurdo ...

[smail2joe]

My god! is this Wagner or Beethoven?! Who arranged this piece?This music is about brotherhood, not selfglorification.

[carlostito1940]

Daniel : As duas sao Brasileiras. O absurdo e' maior.

[velponstick]

beethoven

[sstuddert]

@smail2joe this is a mockery, they may as well spit on Beethoven's grave and cry out "and what will you do, oh great one? nothing, you are dead!".

[AndrewDeLong]

I had this on my MP3 player for the longest time, and didn't know it was's Andre's Version. I know its his now because it matches the audio of my to the "T" God Bless Beethoven, and Schiller for the lyrics!!!

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong have you heard the actual symphony?

[AndrewDeLong]

@sstuddert

Yes, I have. I have heard it done as by Leonard Bernstein. I liked that version more for its attempt at genuineness, but I like the vocal power behind this performance too. Musical taste, my friend, is in the ear of the beholder.

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong Musical taste is in the ear of the beholder – or so I thought until I was enlightened by some of the misguided comments on this page.

There is no vocal power behind this performance. Apart from the fact that this tasteless parody of the symphony is lacking an SATB choir, Rieu has also omitted two soloists, immediately diminishing the richness of the texture by allowing for only one countermelody.

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong . Ontop of this, his arrangement for the two soloists, far from achieving subtle beauty through its simplicity, is completely inelegant. My God, I have never known such a dreadfully graceless countermelody as this one - I won’t even try to imagine the terrific spectacle that would be his attempt at four part counterpoint!

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong Furthermore, every aspect of Rieu’s orchestration indicates a total, conscious disregard for Beethoven’s artistic style. The elaborate counter melodies which once occupied the string parts are here replaced by unimaginative drones in the higher registers. The brass section, which once served to execute the master’s most tempestuous cries of wrath and ecstasy, has been assigned dim flourishes of artless trash, so dull it is unworthy of even the most uninspired of composers.

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong If musical taste lies in the ear of the beholder, “my friend”, the quality of that taste must vary greatly from person to person.

[AndrewDeLong]

@sstuddert

Again, quality is also interpretive. Music, much like painting, photography, cinema, and yes, even video games, is something that is judged individually. What appeals to me may not appeal to you, and vise-versa. I happen to like Rieu's arrangement, whereas, evidently, you don't. That's fine. In the same sense, I'm sure there's stuff you'd like that I might consider to be total tripe. It all comes down to what I said, musical taste is in the ear of the beholder.

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong I don't mind so much that this arrangement is not consistent with my views of the work, but that it is not consistent with Beethoven's.

[AndrewDeLong]

@sstuddert

Then I truly would fear your take on "A Last Illusion" which, though I love, also takes liberties in arranging this piece.

[sstuddert]

@AndrewDeLong ...alright...

[lucasbastos10]

this wasn't on Tuscany, it was on Dublin...

=]

[Scotty1137]

you wanna bet?

[lucasbastos10]

now that i watched it fully i realized so, perhaps they presented the same song on Dublin, very very simmilar.

[35150Alabama]

@Scotty1137 I'm with You, Scotty.

[Scotty1137]

easy to mistake

; )

[sandiek]

@lucasbastos10

[sandiek]

I love this arrangement, but it would be so much better if they didn't look so frakkin bored.

[alexanderlondon]

@lucasbastos10

Dublin? Please lets no joke! This is Cortona, Tuscany, Italy.

[Alagnapassion]

oooops...is this pop syrup what Beethoven had in mind composing this masterpiece?

[solotu09]

could someone send me the words

[a87fhj]

don't be lazy and google it.

[Y2H]

Whh dont U be lazy and google it 4 him????

[a87fhj]

Because I don't want to encourage laziness, and besides I looked it up and it took me about 10 seconds. So solotu could easily have done that himself. But since I looked it up I might as well put it here so here you go:

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 snafter Flügel weilt.(2x)

[Y2H]

Of course the original arrangemnt by Beethoven

is 1000 tinmes better!!

[mapacal08]

excelente el video, ¿Qué está haciendo ahora Carmen Monarca? creo que ya no forma parte de la orquesta de André Rieu, ¿alguien podría responderme?

[Merlin1940]

I know I will be knocked down in ratings, and I regret it since I LOVE what André Rieu *usually* does, but I had never seen sopranos looking sad while singing the Ode To Joy (May be it's the video though, since the audience looks happy with it...).

Sun 27 Jul 2008 23:25 GMT

[Merlin1940]

I also love Carla Maffioletti (see her in "Herr Marquis"! There she looks not sad at all!)

Sun 27 Jul 2008 23:33 GMT

[Dhurrin2]

Sad to say I agree with you. They're looking detached, even sad.

Normally people working with Rieu show their feelings much more, and get more and more enthousiastic.

[rirtif]

Music by Beethoven and lyrics by Schiller, performed by André Rieu's "angels" make this song just beautiful.

[shirarasunami]

the women sing well but look so disengaged from what they're doing.

[doctorflavinho]

FANTASTIC...

Flávio José Di Stéfano Filho

Irapuru City - Brazil

[MJohnsonRockz]

This is music in its purest form!

[Houghage]

brings tears to my eyes everytime I hear this.

Fantastic!

[bustaphatty]

@Houghage you probably have eye cancer dude

[lehliugara]

This is it

[gellicles]

Lovely song-lovely women.

[raft222]

I allways to pretend to conduct with the dvd like Andre

[sstuddert]

@raft222 that's hardly conducting. In any case, why would you want to conduct such a horrendous arrangement?

[raft222]

I love this song by Andre

[worshiperforever]

Música perfeita, dueto perfeito!

Já tinha visto esse concerto em DVD. Vale a pena vê-lo por completo.

Essas mulheres são um orgulho para nós brasileiros.

Simplesmente maravilhosas!