For months, Matt Arnold has immersed himself in one of the most towering works in classical music: Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.
Now, after months of study and rehearsal, Arnold will conduct a special performance of the iconic work at Star of the Sea Church on May 31, bringing together a 43-piece orchestra and a 40-member chorus.
Few compositions carry the weight and reputation of Beethoven’s Ninth, which premiered in 1824 and revolutionized symphonic music by introducing choral voices into the final movement.
“It’s one of those pieces … a pillar of classical music,” Arnold said. “It changed everything. No one had thought to put voices in the symphony before. Beethoven was the first.”
For Arnold, the work’s enduring power lies not only in its musical ambition but in its emotional depth and humanity.
“Beethoven had a method to his madness. He knew what he was doing,” Arnold said. “When he could no longer communicate just through instruments, voices entered the conversation.”
The symphony traces an emotional arc from darkness to triumph, he said.
“I love the whole piece. It’s a journey,” Arnold said. “The first movement is very dramatic, stormy. The symphony itself is a journey from struggle, sacrifice, and the end is joy… the whole human palate of emotions.”
The performance carries added poignancy given Beethoven’s own struggles. By the time he composed the Ninth Symphony, the composer was completely deaf.
“At the first performance, people had to turn him around to the audience. He didn’t realize people were applauding,” Arnold said.
Arnold sees the piece as deeply personal.
“He was expressing his struggles as a person, composer, musician,” Arnold said. “He was a famously curmudgeonly person, but he longed for human connection, and I don’t know if he ever quite found it.”
Still, Arnold believes the message at the heart of the symphony remains hopeful and universal.
“He never gave up believing that we as people share one common connection to humanity,” Arnold said.
One line in particular resonates with him.
“It’s towards the end of the last movement and translates into ‘Brothers, above the starry canopy there must be a loving father,’” Arnold said.
The free performance will take place May 31 at 4 p.m. at the church. Audience members are encouraged to bring a nonperishable food item for donation to the Marblehead Food Pantry.
