Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) a symphony (thus making it a choral symphony). The words are sung during the final movement by four vocal soloists and a chorus. They were taken from the "Ode to Joy", a poem written by Friedrich Schiller in 1785 and revised in 1803, with text additions made by the composer. In 2001, Beethoven's original, hand-written manuscript of the score, held by the Berlin State Library, was added to the United Nations Memory of the World Programme Heritage list, becoming the first musical score so designated. The Philharmonic Society of London originally commissioned the symphony in 1817. The main composition work
Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) of the first movement, a pattern also found in the "Hammerklavier" piano sonata, written a few years earlier. At times during the piece, Beethoven specifies one downbeat every three measures—perhaps because of the fast tempo—with the direction "ritmo di tre battute" (rhythm of three beats) and one beat every four measures with the direction "ritmo di quattro battute" (rhythm of four beats). Beethoven had been criticized before for failing to adhere to standard Classical form for his compositions. He used this movement to answer his critics. Normally, a scherzo is in triple time. Beethoven wrote this piece in triple time