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Marking the 200th anniversary of the death of Ludwig van BeethovenConcerts, insights and stories  

Beethoven: Stories and insights

27 March 2027 marks the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death. Throughout the 2026/27 season, we will be placing particular emphasis on his life and work. On this page you will find articles that shed light on Beethoven’s life and work, as well as all the concerts to mark the anniversary.

Dark, swirling storm clouds fill the sky, illuminated by a pale blue light, creating a dramatic and ominous atmosphere.

“Buzzing and ringing day and night”

That it should be a composer, of all people, who loses his hearing is among the great tragedies of music history. For Beethoven, this catastrophe occurred at a time in his life when he was striving to establish himself as an independent artist and to find his own path. The inexorable loss of his hearing became an existential ordeal that left a lasting mark on his thoughts, emotions and composing.

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1968: Photo for filming Beethoven's Ninth Symphony | Picture: Lauterwasser/Achiv Berliner Philharmoniker

Symphonic lighthouse

Beethoven’s Ninth and the Berliner Philharmoniker: a retrospective

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Ludwig van Beethoven the pianist

Ludwig van Beethoven was a piano prodigy; he enjoyed the greatest successes of his early career as a pianist. However, as his hearing deteriorated, this changed.

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A person with light skin, curly hair, and a white turban gazes at the viewer. They wear a red garment with a gold clasp and are set against a dark background.
Antonie Brentano | Picture: Josef Karl Stieler (1781–1858), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Who was Beethoven’s “Immortal Beloved”?

Beethoven dedicated the first print of his Seventh Symphony to Antonie Brentano. Was she perhaps his “Immortal Beloved”? To this day, the mystery has not been completely resolved.

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Ludwig van Beethoven in the Digital Concert Hall

Concerts, interviews, films and playlists: discover Beethoven and his music in the Digital Concert Hall.

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Concerts

Four musicians pose with string instruments in front of a dark background. They wear black evening dress and hold a cello, two violins and a viola in their hands. They stand close together and look at the camera with a relaxed expression on their faces.

Chamber Music Hall

At the invitation of the Berliner Philharmoniker

Quatuor Ébène:
Pierre Colombet violin
Gabriel Le Magadure violin
Marie Chilemme viola
Yuya Okamoto cello

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in F major, op. 18 No. 1

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in E flat major, op. 74 “Harp”

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in C major, op. 59 No. 3 “Razumovsky”

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Four musicians pose with string instruments in front of a dark background. They wear black evening dress and hold a cello, two violins and a viola in their hands. They stand close together and look at the camera with a relaxed expression on their faces.

Chamber Music Hall

At the invitation of the Berliner Philharmoniker

Quatuor Ébène:
Pierre Colombet violin
Gabriel Le Magadure violin
Marie Chilemme viola
Yuya Okamoto cello

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in B flat major, op. 18 No. 6

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in A minor, op. 132

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A group of 12 musicians in formal black attire stand in a hall holding brass instruments, including trombones, trumpets, a tuba and French horns, in front of a colourful polka dot wall in the background.

Chamber Music Hall

Berliner Philharmoniker Ensembles

Blechbläserensemble der Berliner Philharmoniker:
Guillaume Jehl trumpet
Tamás Velenczei trumpet
Sarah Willis french horn
Olaf Ott trombone
Jesper Busk Sørensen trombone
Stefan Stefan trombone
Alexander von Puttkamer tuba
David Guerrier trumpet
Bertold Stecher trumpet
Jonathon Robert Ramsay trombone

Works by
Franz Schubert, Ludwig van Beethoven, Oskar Böhme, Giovanni Gabrieli, Hans Werner Henze, Joseph Haydn and Engelbert Humperdinck

Franz Schubert
Marche Militaire, D 733 No. 1 (arr. for brass ensemble by David Guerrier)

Ludwig van Beethoven
March for Military Band No. 2, WoO 19 (arr. for brass ensemble by Jonathon Ramsay)

Oskar Böhme
Trumpet Sextet in E flat minor, op. 30

Ludwig van Beethoven
Trio for two oboes and cor anglais in C major, op. 87

Ludwig van Beethoven
March for Military Band in D major, WoO 24 (arr. for brass ensemble by Jonathon Ramsay)

Interval

Giovanni Gabrieli
Canzon XV

Hans Werner Henze
Sonata per otto ottoni

Joseph Haydn
The Creation: The great work is complete (arr. for brass)

Ludwig van Beethoven
3 Equali for 4 Trombones, WoO 30

Engelbert Humperdinck
Hansel und Gretel: Suite (arr. for brass ensemble)

Werke aus »Frohe Weihnachten!«:

An Australian Christmas (arr. for brass ensemble)

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Chamber Music Hall

Berliner Philharmoniker Ensembles

Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson flute
Egor Egorkin flute
Jonathan Kelly oboe
Dominik Wollenweber oboe
Alexander Bader clarinet
Matic Kuder clarinet
Stefan Schweigert bassoon
Václav Vonášek bassoon
Paula Ernesaks french horn
Andrej Žust french horn

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven, Gustav Schreck and George Enescu

Ludwig van Beethoven
Octet in E flat major, op. 103

Gustav Schreck
Nonet, op. 40

Interval

George Enescu
Dectet for Winds, op. 14

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Kirill Petrenko conducts the orchestra with a baton. He stands on a podium, with sheet music in front of him. Wearing a black suit, he has a focused expression, and in the background, there is a dimly lit audience.

Biennale of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Golda Schultz soprano
Wiebke Lehmkuhl contralto
Sebastian Kohlhepp tenor
David Steffens bass
Rundfunkchor Berlin

Ludwig van Beethoven
Missa solemnis in D major, op. 123

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Also available in the Biennale package

Kirill Petrenko conducts the orchestra with a baton. He stands on a podium, with sheet music in front of him. Wearing a black suit, he has a focused expression, and in the background, there is a dimly lit audience.

Biennale of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Golda Schultz soprano
Wiebke Lehmkuhl contralto
Sebastian Kohlhepp tenor
David Steffens bass
Rundfunkchor Berlin

Ludwig van Beethoven
Missa solemnis in D major, op. 123

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Also available in the Biennale package

Kirill Petrenko conducts the orchestra with a baton. He stands on a podium, with sheet music in front of him. Wearing a black suit, he has a focused expression, and in the background, there is a dimly lit audience.

Biennale of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Golda Schultz soprano
Wiebke Lehmkuhl contralto
Sebastian Kohlhepp tenor
David Steffens bass
Rundfunkchor Berlin

Ludwig van Beethoven
Missa solemnis in D major, op. 123

Stream
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Also available in the Biennale package

Four classical musicians, three holding violins and one holding a cello, stand together smiling against a plain light background. They are dressed formally in black and white attire.

Chamber Music Hall

Berliner Philharmoniker Ensembles

Philharmonisches Streichquartett:
Dorian Xhoxhi violin
Helena Madoka Berg violin
Christoph Heesch cello

Takehiro Konoe viola

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert and Johannes Brahms

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in F major, op. 59 No. 1 “Razumovsky”

Interval

Franz Schubert
String Quartet Movement in C minor, D 103 (Fragment)

Johannes Brahms
String Quartet No. 1 in C minor, op. 51 No. 1

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Quatuor Ébène

Chamber Music Hall

At the invitation of the Berliner Philharmoniker

Quatuor Ébène:
Pierre Colombet violin
Gabriel Le Magadure violin
Marie Chilemme viola
Yuya Okamoto cello

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in D major, op. 18 No. 3

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in F minor, op. 95 “Quartetto serioso”

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in E minor, op. 59 No. 2 “Razumovsky”

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Chamber Music Hall

Karajan-Akademie der Berliner Philharmoniker
Brett Dean conductor
Annika Treutler piano

Works by
Brett Dean, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Ludwig van Beethoven and György Kurtág

Brett Dean
Dream Sequence

Erich Wolfgang Korngold
String Sextet in D major, op. 10

Interval

Brett Dean
Epitaphs for string quintet

Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor, op. 27 No. 2 “Moonlight”: 1st Movement Adagio sostenuto

György Kurtág
...quasi una fantasia..., op. 27 No. 1

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Leif-Ove Andsnes with light brown hair and a beard, wearing a dark suit and turtleneck, stands against a dark background, looking to the side with a serious expression.

Chamber Music Hall

At the invitation of the Berliner Philharmoniker

Piano recital

Leif Ove Andsnes piano

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, op. 109

Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 31 in A flat major, op. 110

Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, op. 111

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Mitsuko Uchida with dark wavy hair sits indoors by a window, resting her chin on her hand and smiling gently. She wears a textured black jacket and a light turtleneck sweater.

Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Gustavo Dudamel conductor
Mitsuko Uchida piano

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven and Anton Bruckner

Ludwig van Beethoven
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B flat major, op. 19

Mitsuko Uchida piano

Interval

Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 4 in E flat major “Romantic” (2nd version from 1878/1880)

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Mitsuko Uchida with dark wavy hair sits indoors by a window, resting her chin on her hand and smiling gently. She wears a textured black jacket and a light turtleneck sweater.

Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Gustavo Dudamel conductor
Mitsuko Uchida piano

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven and Anton Bruckner

Ludwig van Beethoven
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B flat major, op. 19

Mitsuko Uchida piano

Interval

Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 4 in E flat major “Romantic” (2nd version from 1878/1880)

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Mitsuko Uchida with dark wavy hair sits indoors by a window, resting her chin on her hand and smiling gently. She wears a textured black jacket and a light turtleneck sweater.

Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Gustavo Dudamel conductor
Mitsuko Uchida piano

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven and Anton Bruckner

Ludwig van Beethoven
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B flat major, op. 19

Mitsuko Uchida piano

Interval

Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 4 in E flat major “Romantic” (2nd version from 1878/1880)

Stream
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Kirill Petrenko energetically conducts the orchestra. He holds a baton and gestures with his other hand, surrounded by musicians playing various string instruments.

Main Auditorium

Berliner Philharmoniker
Kirill Petrenko conductor
Leif Ove Andsnes piano

Works by
Felix Mendelssohn, Edvard Grieg and Ludwig van Beethoven

Felix Mendelssohn
The Hebrides Overture, op. 26

Programme note

Edvard Grieg
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in A minor, op. 16

Leif Ove Andsnes piano

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 6 in F major, op. 68 “Pastoral”

Programme note

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Four musicians pose with string instruments in front of a dark background. They wear black evening dress and hold a cello, two violins and a viola in their hands. They stand close together and look at the camera with a relaxed expression on their faces.

Chamber Music Hall

At the invitation of the Berliner Philharmoniker

Quatuor Ébène:
Pierre Colombet violin
Gabriel Le Magadure violin
Marie Chilemme viola
Yuya Okamoto cello

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet in F major, op. 59 No. 1 “Razumovsky”

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
String Quartet No. 13 in B flat major, op. 130 with Grosse Fuge, op. 133

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Chamber Music Hall

Berliner Philharmoniker Ensembles

Harry Ward violin
Julia Gartemann viola
Solène Kermarrec cello
Piotr Zimnik double bass
Andraž Golob clarinet
Václav Vonášek bassoon
Johannes Lamotke french horn
Noora Ylönen piano

Works by
Ludwig van Beethoven and Béla Bartók

Ludwig van Beethoven
Trio in B flat major, op. 11 “Gassenhauer”

Béla Bartók
Contrasts for violin, clarinet and piano, Sz 111

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven
Septet in E flat major, op. 20

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