Beethoven/Bernstein: Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 "Ode to Freedom" Concert
Four soloists, three choirs, and members of six top orchestras, representing the two German States and the four Occupying Power States of post-war Berlin, participated: musicians from orchestras of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, from Dresden, Leningrad (St Petersburg), London, New York, and Paris. Three choirs supported Bernstein at his great Berlin Ode To Freedom concert: the Bavarian Radio Chorus; members of the Radio Chorus of what had been East Berlin; and the Children’s Choir of the Dresden Philharmonie. The solo quartet featured June Anderson, soprano; Sarah Walker, mezzo-soprano; Klaus König, tenor; and Jan-Hendrik Rootering, bass. When the musicians gathered in Berlin for the concert residents were chiseling away at the hated Berlin Wall. Leonard Bernstein also carved a chunk of the wall and sent it to his family in New York.