BTHVN on Tour at New England Conservatory

Burnes Hall at NEC's Student Life and Performance Center
Free and open to the public

BTHVN on Tour comes to Boston, on display for one week only in New England Conservatory's Burnes Hall.

The traveling exhibition was developed by leading logistics company DHL and Beethoven's birthplace museum, Beethoven-Haus Bonn. Displays include artifacts that have never before been displayed outside of the Beethoven-Haus museum.

Among the rare exhibit items are an ear trumpet used by the composer and an original print from Andy Warhol’s 1987 Beethoven Series. Multimedia displays—including an animated depiction of Beethoven’s hand writing the manuscript of his famous Diabelli Variations—will bring visitors closer to the composer and his creative processes. Visitors will also have the unique opportunity to take home a personalized wax seal of their own, just as Beethoven famously had on his violin.

Visiting Hours

Sunday, October 27 | 1 – 7 p.m.

Monday, October 28 | 2 – 10:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 29 | 2 – 10:30 p.m.

Wednesday, October 30 | 2 – 10:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 31 | 2 – 10:30 p.m.

Friday, November 1 | 2 – 10:30 p.m.

Saturday, November 2 | 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Oct 29 – Nov 1 | Mini-concerts in the exhibit

At 6:15 on the following evenings, enjoy short performances by students and faculty within the BTHVN on Tour exhibit:

Tue, Oct 29 | Mendelssohn String Quartet opus 13 (a work inspired by Beethoven)

Played by the Borromeo String Quartet

Beethoven String Quartet opus 59, No. 3

Jeein Kim, Isabelle Durrenberger, violins; Halam Kim, viola; Jasmine Pai, cello

Thu, Oct 31 | Beethoven String Quartet opus 131, No. 14 in C# Major

Victoria Pan, Juli Kim, Violins; Chiau-Rung Chen, viola; Weiting Sun, Cello

Fri, Nov 1 | Beethoven Violin Sonata

Qiyan Xing, violin

Beethoven String Quartet opus 127, No. 12 in Eb Major

Yebin Yoo, Julian Rhee, violins; Julian Seney, Viola; Annabel Hauk, cello

Tue, Oct 29 | “Ode to Joy” Flash Mob
Center Court, The Prudential Center
Approximately 11:30 a.m.

To celebrate not only Beethoven, but the special partnership between the Gewandhausorchester, Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), and NEC, DHL will be “delivering” a flash mob of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” at the Prudential Center on October 29 at around 11:30 a.m.

The performance will include strings and singers from New England Conservatory, alongside musicians from the BSO and Gewandhausorchester. Conducted by Anna Rakitina, the BSO’s newest assistant conductor, beginning in the 2019-2020 season.

Wed, Oct 30 | Panel Discussion: Conducting a Digital World
NEC's Williams Hall
6 p.m.

Historically, access to classical music was reserved for of a small, elite group. Even today, easy access to this genre is not always guaranteed. Our panelists will talk about how innovative technologies support the democratization of classical music and are pushing boundaries—just as Beethoven did in his time.

Panelists:

• Prof. Andreas Schulz | CEO, Gewandhaus
• Malte Boecker | CEO, Beethoven-Haus Bonn
• Mark Volpe | President and CEO, Boston Symphony Orchestra
• Monika Schaller | Head of Communications, Sustainability & Brand, Deutsche Post DHL Group
• Birgit Gehring | Communications Director, IDAGIO
• Moderated by Nicholas Kitchen | NEC Violin Faculty and Member of the Borromeo String Quartet

Seating is limited to invited guests and NEC staff, faculty, and students, who may reserve seats by contacting Margie Apfelbaum

Wed, Oct 30 | NEC Philharmonia performs Beethoven's Symphony No. 7
NEC's Jordan Hall
8 p.m.

The globally touring exhibit’s Boston stop will coincide with NEC Philharmonia's performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7. Reserve your free tickets

DHL and Beethoven-Haus Bonn designed this traveling exhibit, which consists of eight modules with easily accessible displays focused on Beethoven’s music and life.

Multimedia elements provide insight into Beethoven’s creative process, showing the individual steps he followed from his initial sketchbook through to the finished musical score. An interactive timeline highlights the important events in Beethoven’s life against the larger social and political events during his life spanning from 1770 to 1827. 

The exhibit also features unique pieces from the Beethoven-Haus collection, some being shown internationally for the first time, such as an original portrait from Andy Warhol’s 1987 Beethoven Series and Beethoven’s original ear trumpet. Special audio samples allow visitors to experience the extent of Beethoven’s hearing loss.

Original exhibit pieces and high-quality facsimile reproductions created especially for the exhibition have been combined with multimedia technology to give visitors a fascinating look into the life and work of Beethoven.

Kicking off in Leipzig, Germany before traveling to the United States for the rest of this year, the unprecedented 'BTHVN on Tour' exhibition has begun two years of traveling around the globe to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven's birth in 2020.