North Carolina Symphony: Beethoven Symphony No. 9

The North Carolina Symphony is bringing Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 to Meymandi Concert Hall on Friday, February 26, and Saturday, February 27. It's the big one—the Ninth is the symphony most people know, the one that builds toward that massive choral finale, the 'Ode to Joy.'

Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto is leading the orchestra, and he's not doing the symphony alone. The North Carolina Master Chorale joins in for the choral movements, and four soloists take the leads: soprano Katie Van Kooten, mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford, tenor John Matthew Myers, and bass Matt Boehler. The program pairs the symphony with selections from Fidelio, Beethoven's only opera, which shares the same spirit of freedom and dramatic intensity. Hearing them together lets you trace that line from the opera's theatrical energy to the symphony's sweeping scale.

These two concerts are part of a season-long festival celebrating Beethoven, with Prieto leading the symphony and guest artists across five different programs. Two centuries after the composer died, the festival keeps his work in the conversation, and the Ninth is the natural centerpiece. The North Carolina Symphony, the state's orchestra, frames these performances around its dual legacies of statewide service and music education, and Meymandi Concert Hall is described as an exceptionally acoustic and intimate backdrop for a work this large.

There are two chances to catch it: Friday, February 26, at 7:30 PM and Saturday, February 27, at 3:00 PM. Tickets start at $51.