The Great Success of the First Beethoven Marathon in Dortmund: Ending with Ten-Minute Standing Ovation

The Belgrade and Dortmund Philharmonic Music Marathon was held in Dortmund (June 19) with joint Chief Conductor Gabriel Feltz. They performed Beethoven’s marathon in which was followed a ten-minute standing ovation.

The choir of the Slovak Philharmonic and soloists Ana Malesza-Kutny, Michaela Selinger, Young Woo Kim and Robert Bork also performed in the joint venture of the Belgrade and Dortmund Philharmonic Orchestras at the Konzerthaus Dortmund, and the famous Ode to Joy was performed with more than 200 musicians on stage.

The Beethoven Marathon, the biggest event in the world of classical music this year, is setting a kind of record in the entire history of musical performance, with Gabriel Feltz conducting for more than seven hours.

From morning to evening, the two orchestras performed all of Beethoven’s symphonies alternately, and they performed the Ninth Symphony together.

– I am very happy, the idea succeeded, the audience reacted fantastically, and I am especially glad that the Belgrade Philharmonic had such a successful debut in Dortmund. Congratulations to all my colleagues on a great success. This is the biggest project in my life, I prepared for a great effort, but I can say that it was easier than I expected – said Chief Conductor Gabriel Feltz.

Standing ovations followed each of the five concerts held as part of the marathon.

The Beethoven marathon started at 10:00 a.m. with the first two symphonies performed by the Dortmund Philharmonic, and the Belgrade Philharmonic performed at 12:30 with the Third and Fourth.

Then, the German orchestra performed the Fifth and Sixth symphonies at 5:30 p.m. and the Belgraders performed the Seventh and Eighth Symphonies from 5:30 p.m., followed by the joint performance of the monumental Ninth Symphony as the grand finale.

Seventy minutes of magnificent music kept the audience breathless, and the culmination was the Ode to Joy that lifted the audience to its feet.

The Beethoven Marathon will be performed once again, on Sunday, June 26, when the Belgrade and Dortmund Philharmonic Orchestras alternately perform the first eight symphonies at the City Concert Hall in Novi Sad ending with the triumphant Ninth Symphony and Ode to Joy at a free open-air concert in Petrovaradin Fortress as part of the of the European Capital of Culture’s “Fortress of Peace” project.