BEETHOVEN’S NINE: ODE TO HUMANITY

Larry Weinstein | Canada / Germany 2024 | 83’ | OV with german subtitles

In early 2023, filmmaker Larry Weinstein set out to explore the enduring legacy of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony 200 years after its creation – only to be drawn into his own film by world events: During the attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz on 7 October 2023, his sister and brother-in-law were murdered – prompting Weinstein to turn the project into a deeply personal reflection on the power of art in the face of political disaster.

The film presents nine contemporary perspectives on Beethoven’s epoch-making work, including Ukrainian-Canadian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, director of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, which consists of Ukrainian refugees; composer Gabriela Lena Frank from the USA, who was born with significantly impaired hearing; Polish rock singer Monika Brodka and Canadian psychologist Steven Pinker; but also celebrities Charles M. Schulz (the creator of the ‘Peanuts’ comic strip) and Leonard Bernstein – an exploration of resilience at the interface between art and life, driven by the same urge that may have inspired Beethoven to create his masterpiece: a desire to consistently stand up for peace, freedom, compassion and humanity.