Beethoven: Symphonies No. 2 & No. 8 (Live) Les Dissonances & David Grimal

• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827): Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36:
• 1Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36: I. Adagio molto - Allegro con brio (Live)11:40
• 2Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36: II. Larghetto (Live)10:18
• 3Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36: III. Scherzo - Allegro (Live)03:45
• 4Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36: IV. Allegro molto (Live)06:33
• Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93:
• 5Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93: I. Allegro vivace e con brio (Live)08:08
• 6Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93: II. Allegretto scherzando (Live)03:52
• 7Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93: III. Tempo di menuetto (Live)04:28
• 8Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93: IV. Allegro vivace (Live)07:34
• Total Runtime56:18

Info for Beethoven: Symphonies No. 2 & No. 8 (Live)

"The name of Beethoven is a hallowed one in the realm of art. His symphonies are universally acknowledged today as masterpieces. . . . Thanks to the untold development of its harmonic power, the piano tends increasingly to assimilate the entire orchestral repertoire. In the compass of its seven octaves, it can produce, with only a few exceptions, all the characteristics, all the combinations, all the most learned compositional figures . . . Such has been my aim in the work I publish today."

Symphony no.2 in D major op.36: On 10 October 1802, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) wrote, in the form of a testament, the text that would seal his pact with music. Having lived in seclusion from Viennese life at Heiligenstadt for the past six months, he confided: ‘. . . for six years now I have been afflicted by an incurable condition . . . [and] deceived year after year by hopes of an improvement . . . Yet it was not possible for me to say: ‘Speak louder, shout, for I am deaf.’ Ah, how could I admit to weakness in the one sense that should be perfect in me to a higher degree than in others . . . ? . . . If I venture into society, I am overcome by a burning terror, inasmuch as I fear to find myself in the danger of allowing my condition to be noticed. . . . It would have needed little for me to put an end to my life. It was art only which held me back.’

Symphony no.8 in F major op.93: Beethoven composed his Symphony no.8 during the year 1812, but held back its first performance until 1814, when, coupled with the already popular Symphony no.7, which is contemporary with it, and the noisy and chauvinistic ‘Battle Symphony’ Wellington’s Victory, it passed almost unnoticed. Brief, lyrical, joyful and studded with witticisms, it is often spoken of as recalling the influence of Haydn. Beethoven showed that he was especially proud of this symphony when his pupil Carl Czerny asked him why it was less popular than the Seventh: ‘Because it is so much better!’ It particularly appealed to Robert Schumann, who admired its ‘profound humour’ and the character of the second movement, which ‘filled him with tranquillity and happiness’.

Les Dissonances
David Grimal, violin, conductor

David Grimal
is a musician who enjoys an international reputation for the originality of his musical career. In his tireless quest to reflect on the role of his art in society, he juxtaposes perspectives in order to make music differently by reinventing the sense of the collective.

As an internationally renowned soloist, he has been invited to perform under the direction of the leading conductors (Christoph Eschenbach, Heinrich Schiff, Lawrence Foster, Emmanuel Krivine, Mikhail Pletnev, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Peter Eötvös, Andris Nelsons, Jukka- Pekka Saraste, Christian Arming, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Stanisław Skrowaczewski, Michel Plasson, Hubert Soudant, François-Xavier Roth, Pascal Rophé, Gerard Korsten, James Judd, Matthias Bamert, Lawrence Foster, Jaap van Sweden etc.) with such formations as the Orchestre de Paris, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Berliner Symphoniker, the Russian National Orchestra, the New Japan Philharmonic, the English Chamber Orchestra, the Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg, the Jerusalem Symphony, the Prague Philharmonia, the Gulbenkian Orchestra Lisbon, Sinfonia Varsovia, the Florida Philharmonic and the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra…

He is a welcome guest in the world’s foremost concert halls, among them Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Philharmonie de Paris, the Vienna Musikverein, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, the Berlin Konzerthaus, Wigmore Hall in London, the Zurich Tonhalle, Lincoln Center in New York, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, the Ferenc Liszt Academy in Budapest, the Victoria Hall in Geneva, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, the National Concert Hall in Taiwan and Bozar in Brussels.

Many composers have dedicated works to him, including Marc-André Dalbavie, Brice Pauset, Thierry Escaich, Lisa Lim, Jean-François Zygel, Alexandre Gasparov, Victor Kissine, Fuminori Tanada, Ivan Fedele, Philippe Hersant, Anders Hillborg, Oscar Bianchi, Guillaume Connesson, Frédéric Verrières, Richard Dubugnon, Eric Montalbetti …

An indefatigable researcher, he re-examines the early music repertory and in particular explores historically informed performance practice with such musicians as Andreas Staier, Brice Pauset, Mathieu Dupouy and Maude Gratton. He is a sought-after pedagogue, and currently teaches at the Hochschule für Musik in Saarbrücken, where he also develops conductorless projects with the student orchestra. He plays the 1710 “Ex-Roederer” Stradivarius with bows by Pierre Tourte, Léonard and François-Xavier Tourte and Pierre Grunberger.

David Grimal is regularly invited to sit on the juries of international competitions and gives masterclasses all over the world.

Les Dissonances
The violinist David Grimal, equally committed to the solo and chamber repertories, appears in the world’s leading classical music venues. As an innovative artist, he aims to reinvent musical practice by leading several projects successfully developing the spirit of “working together”.

For the past ten years he has devoted part of his career to developing Les Dissonances, of which he is artistic director. In this laboratory of ideas, conceived as a collective of musicians, David Grimal and his friends experience music as a joy rediscovered and tackle the symphonic repertory in the spirit of chamber music. The only ensemble that explores the large-scale symphonic repertory without a conductor, Les Dissonances have established residencies in prestigious institutions that offer long-term collaborations, including the Philharmonie de Paris, the Opéra de Dijon and Le Volcan in Le Havre, and appear regularly all over Europe.

Inspired by his experience with Les Dissonances, David Grimal develops projects as artistic director with other orchestras and regular ensembles.

As an artistic director, he develops the concept ‘Let’s play together!’ based on his experience with Les Dissonances. David Grimal rehearses the entire concert programme with the musicians in order to prepare them to play without a conductor at the concert. He shares the platform with them also by performing a concerto. He is invited by many orchestras to work with them and play the great violin concertos, notably Budapesti Vonosok, Anima Chamber Orchestra, Sinfonietta Cracovia, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, Orchestra Sinfonica de Murcia, Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Lorraine, National Orchestra of Metz, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Taipei Symphony Orchestra…

Booklet for Beethoven: Symphonies No. 2 & No. 8 (Live)