Shooting locations: Saline Royale d'Arc et Senans, FrauenKirche in Dresden, Philharmonie de Paris etc...

Performers : Jordi Savall, Le Concert des Nations, La Capella Reial de Catalunya

This documentary testifies Jordi Savall’s work regarding the role of Beethoven's symphonies in the history of music over the last two centuries.

Jordi Savall's intention was based on the fundamental idea of recovering the original, organic sound of the orchestra as imagined by Beethoven and available to him as an ensemble made up of the instruments in use at the time.

It was necessary to know the original sources of the existing manuscripts, for which Jordi Savall studied and compared the autograph sources and also the existing materials of the parts used for the first concerts, as well as the modern editions made from these same sources, with the aim of verifying all the indications of dynamics and articulation.

Jordi Savall wanted to take all these elements into account, starting from a real return to the sources and an original conception.

The main objective, which is to project into the 21st century all the richness and beauty of these symphonies - very well known and too often presented in an oversized and overloaded form. It is to restore to these works the essence of their own energy, thanks to a true natural balance between colors and the natural sound quality of the orchestra, which is made up  of all the ancient instruments : the string instruments (gut strings and historical bows), woodwind instruments (Woodwind): flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons and contrabassoons; metal instruments (Brass): sackbut, trumpets and natural trumpets; and period timpani played with wooden mallets.

The result is revolutionary brilliance, articulation, balance and dynamics, the basis of a dynamism founded on respect for Beethoven's tempi and the resulting phrasing, according to the indications of character and the dramaturgy carried by the spiritual power of his own message.

Jordi Savall explains his adaptations’ work, illustrated with many different parts of concerts, shot all around the world.