Ode to Joy Anthem of Europe by the Council of Europe in 1972 and subsequently by the European Union. Schiller wrote the first version of the poem when he was staying in Gohlis, Leipzig. In the year 1785 from the beginning of May till mid September, he stayed with his publisher Georg Joachim Göschen in Leipzig and wrote "An die Freude" along with his play "Don Carlos". Schiller later made some revisions to the poem which was then republished posthumously in 1808, and it was this latter version that forms the basis for Beethoven's setting. Despite the lasting popularity of the ode, Schiller
Symphony No. 8 (Beethoven) C from the opening finally gets an "explanation": “and now it appears that Beethoven has held that note in reserve, wherewith to batter at the door of some immensely distant key. Out bursts the theme then, in F sharp minor.” A few bars later, there is a stunning modulation in which this key is "hammered down" by a semitone, arriving instantaneously at the home key of F major. The symphony ends in good humour on a very long passage of loud tonic harmony. Tchaikovsky called this movement, "One of the greatest symphonic masterpieces of Beethoven." Symphony No. 8 (Beethoven) The