Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 (Finale) - A Pronunciation Guide for Choral Singers

This video helps choral singers with the pronunciation of the
German text in the “Finale” of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.
In the first part of the video, you will hear the original poem by
Friedrich Schiller “Ode an die Freude” being read. While the text
is being spoken, you can follow the German words on the screen.

In the second part of the video, sections of the soprano choral
part are used as a model. Section by section, you will hear the
text of the “Finale” spoken in rhythm and tempo, underlaid with
the German text, the international phonetic transcription, and
Japanese Katakana. Subsequently you will hear the soprano choral
part sung. Measure and page numbers refer to the Bärenreiter
vocal score of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (BA 9009-90).

This video is not meant to teach singers how to sing the actual
notes and melodic lines. It only focuses on the pronunciation.