Beethovenfest: Making classical music accessible to all

The speeches that kickstarted this year's Beethoven Festival in Bonn were all about democracy.

Held at the birthplace of composer Ludwig von Beethoven, the festival will feature around 100 events until October 3, the Day of German Unity.

Referring to the recently concluded state elections in Saxony and Thuringia, where the far-right populist party AfD (Alternative for Germany) made significant inroads, everyone who spoke at the Bonn Opera agreed that this was a clarion call to actively listen to the concerns of the people, besides the need for people to engage with each other despite differing opinions and to find solutions together, where possible.

Opera houses as places of unity?

Allowing citizens to participate and involving them in democracy and in culture was already a goal in German cultural institutions in the 1950s and 60s. The new opera houses of the time also demonstrated this. Instead of thick walls, their facades featured large windows, symbolically opening up to the public and the city. Culture was no longer to be confined to ivory towers. It was supposed to be at the heart of society. A symbol of democracy, so to speak.

There was a catch, though. Although regular people outside could look in, many couldn't afford the expensive tickets. On the other hand, those inside enjoyed city views through the windows and from the balconies, over a glass of champagne during intervals. This is still the case today, even in the Bonn Opera House that was built in 1965 in a new democratic Germany.

Inclusive opening night

"Democratic participation is not just about those who are inside, but especially about those who are outside," emphasized the director of the Beethovenfest, Steven Walter, in his speech. Thus, "Together" is the motto of this year's Beethovenfest.

Though it wasn't possible to grant free entry to everyone for the opening concert at the Bonn Opera, Walter made it possible for a large audience to participate in this event in a different way. In Bonn's main square, almost the same concert presented at the opera was played free of charge, only in reverse order with a rapid rotation of performers.

Rotating venues 

While the techno marching band Meute from Hamburg entered the opera house with a funeral march, Beethoven's Fifth Symphony was played on Bonn's market square with the Kammerakademie Potsdam. The two ensembles later switched venues.

But wait. A techno marching band at a classical concert? Ever since Steven Walter took over as director of the Beethoven Festival in Bonn three years ago, he has proven his knack for surprises, mixing unfamiliar sounds with traditional ones within a concert program, thus providing a different approach to classical music.

Hearing Beethoven with different ears

Under the baton of Chinese conductor Elim Chan, the Kammerakademie Potsdam performed Beethoven's Fifth Symphony differently, emphasizing certain passages and individual instruments that otherwise tend to remain hidden in the orchestral sound.

Steven Walter's idea of allowing more people to participate in culture and to arouse curiosity by including other interpretations, other sounds and styles also applies to the orchestra. "Music is direct and, compared to politics, it has the advantage that it can appeal to everyone across cultural and language barriers." Peter Rainer, the orchestra's first violinist, told DW that music is a language that goes straight to the heart.

Saving the climate and the world

Perhaps spoken messages can also be conveyed better with music. Climate activist Luisa Neubauer certainly succeeded in doing so at the opening concert. 

Neubauer became known as Greta Thunberg's companion in the "Fridays for Future" climate campaign.

At the opening concert, she recited a text about the state of the world, accompanied by Beethoven's "Cavatina" from String Quartet No. 13 op 130. And there was a special reason for this.

In 1977, two golden storage disks were sent on an interstellar journey with the Voyager 1 and 2 space probes to show possible beings on other planets what Earth has to offer. The special feature: They also contained music recordings, coded images and sounds. These included the solemn "Cavatina" by Beethoven from his 13th String Quartet, played by four musicians from the Resonanz ensemble.

In her speech, Neubauer said that they naturally wanted to show the beautiful sides of the world. In the Age of Enlightenment, in which Beethoven lived, people began to accept the findings of science and not just believe in the word of God. However, the advancing mechanization also destroyed a lot.

"Climate researchers are saying that the stability of the Earth's systems is threatening to collapsecompletely for the first time since the beginning of humanity," said Neubauer. There is "progress that is increasingly unaffordable, technologies that are becoming more and more dangerous and machines that destroy more than they save."

Her plea to try to save this world together and to not give up hope was particularly thought-provoking when set to Beethoven's music and was met with great applause.

This article was originally published in German.