Symphony No. 9 (Schubert) Symphony No. 9 (Schubert) The Symphony No. 9 in C major, D 944, known as the Great (published in 1840 as "Symphony No. 7 in C Major", listed as No. 8 in the Neue Schubert-Ausgabe), is the final symphony completed by Franz Schubert. Originally called "The Great C major" to distinguish it from his Symphony No. 6, the "Little C major", the subtitle is now usually taken as a reference to the symphony's majesty. Unusually long for a symphony of its time, a typical performance of "The Great" takes around 55 minutes, though it can also be played in as
Symphony No. 8 (Beethoven) at a concert in the Redoutensaal, Vienna, at which the Seventh Symphony (which had been premiered two months earlier) was also played. Beethoven was growing increasingly deaf at the time, but nevertheless led the premiere. Reportedly, "the orchestra largely ignored his ungainly gestures and followed the principal violinist instead." When asked by his pupil Carl Czerny why the Eighth was less popular than the Seventh, Beethoven is said to have replied, "because the Eighth is so much better." A critic wrote that "the applause it received was not accompanied by that enthusiasm which distinguishes a work which gives universal delight;