I must say that this is one of my all time favorite pieces. This specific Flash Mob YouTube rendition is amazing and I have watched it over and over for months. Beethoven based his work on a poem by Friedrich Schiller,it being his most famous poem, written in 1785. The poem was originally an “Ode to Freedom” and the word “Joy” (Freude instead of Freiheit) was substituted to present a less overtly political theme at the time. In light of the wars and broken treaties that his life was affected by, he had the same yearnings we all do – for peace through international and inter-factional cooperation. No matter the original basis for the piece it resonates such vibrant hope in my heart whenever I hear it.
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