Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) The Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, is the final complete symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, composed between 1822 and 1824. It was first performed in Vienna on 7 May 1824. One of the best-known works in common practice music, it is regarded by many critics and musicologists as one of Beethoven's greatest works and one of the supreme achievements in the history of western music. In the 2010s, it stands as one of the most performed symphonies in the world. The symphony was the first example of a major composer using voices in
Symphony No. 6 (Beethoven) of feeling than painting", a point underlined by the title of the first movement. The first sketches of the "Pastoral Symphony" appeared in 1802. It was composed simultaneously with Beethoven's more famous—and more fiery—Fifth Symphony. Both symphonies were premiered in a long and under-rehearsed concert in the Theater an der Wien in Vienna on 22 December 1808. The symphony is scored for the following instrumentation: Woodwinds Brass Percussion Strings The symphony has five movements, rather than the four typical of symphonies of the Classical era. Beethoven wrote a programmatic title at the beginning of each movement: The third movement ends