LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 "choral". Choral Fantasy op.80 Kristian Bezuidenhout, Zürcher Sing-Akademie, Freiburger Barockorchester, Pablo Heras-Casado

A fantasy that turned into a symphony?
First and foremost, this double album enshrines the exemplary work of an ensemble whose designation ‘Baroque Orchestra’ by no means limits its excursions into later repertories: under the watchful eye of a gifted conductor, the ‘Freiburgers’ (and co.) offer us a profoundly renewed vision of the Ninth, that myth among myths, that touchstone of a genre in quest of the absolute – and the direct descendant of a much earlier ‘Choral Fantasy’. The latter work showcased one of Beethoven's most extraordinary talents: improvisation. Kristian Bezuidenhout has joined forces again with his concerto partners to let us experience this little-known score as if it had just been premiered . . . then transcribed by Beethoven himself!