Anthem of Europe

The European anthem is the anthem of the European Union and the Council of Europe and one of the official symbols of the European Union.

The hymn is an instrumental version of the main theme to Joy from the last sentence of the Ninth Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven.

History of the European Anthem

The Euro Europe in 1972 to the tune as its own anthem and instructed the conductor Herbert von Karajan with the arrangement of three versions: a solo piano version and one each orchestral version for wind and for symphony orchestra. In 1985, the instrumental version was adopted on the proposal of Adonino Committee of the Heads of State and Government of the European Communities as the official anthem of the EC. It does not replace the national anthems of the Member States, but is an expression of values ​​- freedom, peace and solidarity - shared by all members, as well as an expression of the unity of Europe in diversity.

Anthem without lyrics

To favor any European language and because of the symbolic universality of music, the European anthem is not the choir version of Beethoven with the German text by Friedrich Schiller ( " Joy, beautiful spark of the gods ..."), the Coudenhove -Kalergi, founder of the Pan- Union, had already proposed in 1955 as a European anthem, but an instrumental arrangement.

Although there are several proposed texts in different languages ​​, which were presented in part at events of choirs. And the first application for a European citizens' initiative proposed an Esperanto translation of Beethoven's Choral version before as the text for the European anthem. However, the European Commission rejected the application and none of the other text proposals was officially recognized.

Others

On the day of the declaration of independence of Kosovo, 17 February 2008, the European anthem was played there as a provisional national anthem of the new republic.

To distinguish it from the European anthem is known from the television so-called Euro Vision anthem, the Prelude from the Te Deum by Marc -Antoine Charpentier.