Jun. 27, 2015 : The Ninth

"So, you are going to write an article about Ludwig van Beethoven's final symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, also known as "the Choral"? It was completed in 1824 and is one of the best-known works in classical music. Among critics, it is almost universally considered Beethoven's greatest work, and many consider it one of the greatest compositions in the western musical canon."

"No, this article is not about Beethoven's Ninth Symphony."

"Then perhaps this article is going to express your ideas about Franz Schubert's final Symphony No. 9 in C major, D. 944, known as "the Great"? Originally called The Great C major to distinguish it from his Symphony No. 6, the Little C major, the subtitle is now usually taken as a reference to the symphony's majesty. Unusually long for a symphony of its time, a typical performance of The Great takes around 55 minutes, though it can also be played in as little as 45 minutes by employing a faster tempo and not repeating sections as indicated in the score.""

"Again you're wrong. This article won't tell anything about Schubert's Ninth Smphony."

"Maybe you are inspired by Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, "From the New World," Op. 95? He composed it in 1893 while he was the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America from 1892 to 1895. It is by far his most popular symphony, and one of the most popular of all symphonies. By the way, did you know that Neil Armstrong took a recording of this symphony to the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission, the first Moon landing, in 1969?"

"Once again the answer is negative. I'm not going to write about Dvořák's Ninth Symphony."

"Good Lord Garett, I give up. But can you please tell me what the title of this article is referring to?"

"The answer is fairly simple, Al. In this article I am announcing the acquisition of the ninth title of the compilation series La Route des Tubes, Musique de Film, WEA, 241632-2 which was released in 1989 by WEA for the French market. And since the complete series consists of ten titles in total, I have one more title to go before My Collection features at least one variation of all 310 target CD titles that are known to date."