Franz Welser-Möst conducts Beethoven's Fifth Symphony with The Cleveland Orchestra

There's no mistaking the four-note motif that opens Beethoven's Symphony No. 5, and it's only the beginning of this inspiring concert by Franz Welser-Möst and The Cleveland Orchestra in support of those fighting for freedom across our world. The Fifth, in the maestro's words, "shows us the journey from darkness to light," culminating in a burst of irrepressible C major triumph. Music from Janáček’s haunting operatic vision of a Siberian prison camp, From the House of the Dead, "reveals how human dignity survives even in the most desolate of circumstances," and the Leonore Overture — one of four versions Beethoven composed for Fidelio — is "simply the greatest music about freedom ever written."

Unfortunately, soprano Asmik Grigorian has had to withdraw from this concert for personal reasons.