The premiere of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony took place at the Vienna Kärnthnerthor Theater on May 7, 1824. By this stage of Beethoven’s life, the composer’s hearing had deteriorated to such an extent that conducting the performance was out of the question. Instead, Michael Umlauf led the premiere. But all the while, Beethoven was at Umlauf’s side, attempting to direct the tempos for the various movements.
At the conclusion of the performance, the audience erupted with a spirited ovation. Karoline Unger was the contralto soloist at the premiere of the Beethoven Ninth. More than four decades later, she met with the British music writer, Sir George Grove. During that meeting, Unger described what happened at the May 7, 1824 concert:
The master, though placed in the midst of this confluence of music, heard nothing of it at all and was not even sensible of the applause of the audience at the end of his great work, but continued standing with his back to the audience,
and beating the time, till Fräulein Unger, who had sung the contralto part, turned him, or induced him to turn round and face the people, who were still clapping their hands, and giving way to the greatest demonstrations of pleasure. His turning round, and the sudden conviction thereby forced upon everybody that he had not done so before,
because he could not hear what was going on, acted like an electric shock on all present, and a volcanic explosion of sympathy and admiration followed, which was repeated again and again, and seemed as if it would never end.
Beethoven, Ludwig van: Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Opus 125, “Choral” | Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra
