Von innen und von außen. Beethovens Neunte Sinfonie und die ›Wagner’sche‹ Dirigiertradition

Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony was a matter of fascination for Richard Wagner throughout his life. He made a piano arrangement of the orchestral score when still in his teens, his performance of it in Dresden in 1846 altered the manner of its performance (placing the chorus behind the orchestra), and his 1873 essay on its interpretation, including music examples for alterations to the score, provided a benchmark for a whole generation of future conductors who had never actually heard him conduct it. Using newly discovered sources, we shall investigate Wagner’s actual interpretation of Beethoven’s Ninth. While his published suggestions for performing the Ninth were followed by everyone from Mahler to Strauss and Furtwängler, it turns out that Wagner didn’t actually follow them himself.