Publication:

La declaración por UNESCO de la Novena Sinfonía de Beethoven como Patrimonio Cultural de la Humanidad

The aim of this paper is to reflect about musical heritage following a Theoretical Framework-Case methodology. Based on the declaration of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony as Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO, the text specifically reflects on different perspectives concerning musical heritage, focusing on tangible and intangible nature of music and the relationship of heritage with the idea of culture. The conclusions of this study emphasize that Beethoven's symphony combines the material and immaterial dimension of music at once, and the conception of the humanistic vision of culture with the anthropological view. The reference of this masterpiece for the composers who came after Beethoven places this symphony in a status of artistic excellence -aspect directly linked to the material musical heritage-. However, the history of the creative process and specially the reception of the Ninth, projects this magnum opus into fundamentals of intangible musical heritage.