Is Beethoven's 9th symphony the first piece that combined a chorus with an orchestra?

Question

(a very good musicology question suggested by BenV, from the definition phase of the "Classical Music" area51 proposal).

Beethoven's ninth Symphony (opus 125) is one of the most well-known works of classical music. His last movement uses a choir together with the orchestra.

It is usually considered the first "choral" symphony. Are there no other examples or forerunners of this idea before 1824?

Answer 1

Beethoven's own "Choral Fantasy" came before the Ninth Symphony. It's a weird (and wonderful) piece composed for a particular occasion (actually composed to fill out a concert that was already far too long).

The piano starts it as a solo and plays an improvisatory cadenza that's three or four minutes long. Then the orchestra quietly starts in, builds up in volume, and plays a tune that sounds very much like the Ninth Symphony theme, followed by variations. Finally the chorus enters for a big finish.

That was in 1808. In 1820 composer / pianist Daniel Steibelt wrote and performed a piano concerto with a choral finale, still a few years before Beethoven's Ninth.

In short, a lot of strange things were going on around the turn of the century. The word "symphony" itself changed its meaning from a generic piece for many instruments (like the "Pastoral Symphony" in Handel's "Messiah") to a specific form. In Handel's day, calling a piece a "choral symphony" would be like calling it a "piece for instruments and no singers with singers". For centuries there have been pieces for chorus accompanied by orchestra, but we may never know who was the first to write a piece for orchestra accompanied by chorus.

Answer 2

I have to say no.

As you said, Beethoven's 9th symphony was the first choral symphony but it was not the first piece to combine chorus and orchestra.

There were already pieces from the Baroque that combined them, as the same definition of cantata says:

• Cantata: A sung piece, or choral work with or without vocal soloists, usually with orchestral accompaniment.

Answer 3

Wikipedia, following the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, reports correctly that there was a choral symphony published by a now obscure composer, Peter von Winter, in 1814, ten years before Beethoven's 9th. It is called the Schlachtsymphonie or "battle symphony."

Beethoven also introduced a chorus at the very end of his Fantasy for Piano, Chorus, and Orchestra, written in 1808.

Answer 4

Let's make a distinction here. A symphony is a composition in a specific type of musical form written for an orchestra, which is a type of musical ensemble.

To state it simply, a symphony is a very specific type of long song, whereas an orchestra is a type of band.

There are many kinds of musical pieces written to be played by orchestras that are not symphonies. These include concertos, sonatas, suites, oratorios, and cantatas.

These days the term symphony is used incorrectly to describe an orchestra. People say "I'm going to see the Atlanta Symphony" when what they mean is "I'm going to see the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra". The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra that plays symphonies, as opposed to an orchestra that plays ballets or an orchestra that plays operas or an orchestra that plays oratorios or cantatas.

Calling an orchestra a "symphony" is a modern mistake, something that's appeared in the last thirty years or so.

Here's my point: Yes, Beethoven's Ninth is, basically, the first symphony to feature a chorus.

There are many pieces going back centuries before Beethoven that feature an orchestra and a chorus, but those musical works are not symphonies. They are oratorios, or operas, or ballets, or other forms. Bach's B-minor Mass features a chorus and an orchestra, but Bach's B-minor Mass is not a symphony, it is a Mass. Handel's Messiah features a chorus and an orchestra, but Handel's Messiah is not a symphony, it is an oratorio. Beethoven's Choral Fantasy is not a symphony.

And by way of establishing my credentials, I'm the volunteer business administrator for the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra, which has been performing for fifteen years. They are an orchestra, but they only rarely play symphonies. They more often play concertos, suites, cantatas, and other forms.