Beethoven, King Stephan Overture, op.117

In October 1811, a new German theater was due to be opened in Pest (now part of Budapest); and Beethoven was commissioned to write the inaugural music for the event. The King Stephen Overture, named after the Hungarian King, begins with a slow introduction. Then follows a lively Hungarian tune and a "Friss," a quick and melodic section of the "csárdás." Indeed, Leonard Bernstein has described this overture as "a charmer and a curiosity, a cross between Béla Bartók and Shortnin' Bread." This recording is part of Leonard Bernstein's Beethoven cycle, recorded primarily with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in the early 1980s. Writing in The New York Times, critic John J. O'Connor stated: "As Mr. Bernstein says, there is 'no single body of work in the universe of orchestral music that is in any way comparable to this one.' Conducted with intense dedication and soaring spirits by Mr. Bernstein, these recordings are superb, both visually and aurally."