Daiku

For John, BLUF:  A wonderful performance and tradition.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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From Mental Flosswe have this short article on Beethoven's Ninth being performed in Japan.

In Japan, it's an end-of-year tradition to sing "Ode to Joy," the final movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.  The song is so well-known in Japan that it's known simply as daiku, literally "number nine."  In Osaka, a 10,000-person-strong "Number Nine Chorus" of amateur singers performs daiku every December, to thundering effect.  While there are some professionals involved (the soloists and orchestra), the Number Nine Chorus is largely a community effort.  And the sound of 10,000 singers, trained or untrained, is unbelievable.

And a link that doesn't work.

However, this link worked for me a few minutes ago.  Here is a You Tube version of this year's performance.

Regards  —  Cliff