In this interview, Billy Joel talks about his connection to Beethoven and Vienna and he explains the meaning of "Vienna waits for you", one of his most famous songs.
Topics of this video:
00:00 Intro
00:30 Billy Joel on Beethoven
02:55 Vienna Waits for You - Meaning for Billy Joel (billy joel vienna)
Billy Joel has been a superstar for decades. As well as a fascinating personality. On Long Island, New York, the Grammy winner who has sold more than 82 million albums answered our questions about Beethoven and Vienna in May 2019. The “piano man” is touched by both topics: He talks with passion and spontaneously improvises on the piano. He plays Beethoven by heart. And reports that he grew up with Beethoven’s music and has Viennese ancestors. He used bars from Beethoven’s “Pathétique” in his song “This Night”. That he experienced jamming to classical music in Vienna. And much more...
Pop song with misunderstandings:
Ultravox did it, as did Leonard Cohen – and Vienna was already a frequent theme in Falco’s lyrics. There are lots of pop songs that mention Vienna. The most moving of all? Billy Joel’s piano ballad “Vienna” from 1977. Although “Vienna” is also probably the most often misunderstood and misinterpreted Vienna song of all. The song is neither a general ode to the city’s beauty, nor is the chorus line “Vienna Waits for You” meant as a call to city tourists. And Joel certainly isn’t dedicating the song to young Mozart, as some have thought. Joel actually describes a certain attitude towards life in “Vienna”, which is based on a very personal experience. The city as a metaphor.
Vienna stirs feelings:
Billy Joel about the song’s message: "Which is really what the song is about: Slow down, look around you and have some gratitude for the good things in your life. That’s what Vienna represented to me." The background: Joel first came to Vienna as a 23-year-old in the 1970s to meet his father, who had moved here. They last saw each other when Joel was eight. For the musician, this was the foundation of a very emotional relationship with the city. Vienna gave him the sense of having arrived.
Vienna and music – they belong together. The focus in 2020 is on those artists and institutions that make Vienna the world capital of music. It started long ago, for example with Ludwig van Beethoven, whose 250th birthday will be celebrated in 2020. He was a "musical Viennese by choice" – having chosen Vienna as the focal point of his life and creativity. Like him, Aleksey Igudesman - Impresario of the Beethoven year - and other world stars of the present have chosen Vienna as their special place of music. Billy Joel, Yuja Wang, Hans Zimmer and Joshua Bell are just some of today's Viennese by choice who were interviewed by Aleksey Igudesman. Billy Joel gave us this exclusive interview on May 13th, 2019 in Long Island, NY.
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#BillyJoelInterview #ViennaWaitsForYou #ViennaTourism #Vienna2020 #BillyJoelVienna
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Music:
00:00 - 01:50 Beethovens 7. Symphony with the English Chamber Orchestra, Dirigent: Julian Rachlin
03:39 - 05:20 Beethovens Violin Concert with the English Chamber Orchestra, Violin Soloist: Julian Rachlin
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Credits:
Impresario: Aleksey Igudesman
Director/cameraman: Stefan Wuernitzer
Hair and make-up: Chante Cutter
Sound engineer: Patrick Southern
1st AC: Daniel Tot
Editor: Stefan Wuernitzer
Sound mixer: Emanoel Bruckmüller
Music: Billy Joel, Julian Rachlin
Graphics and animation: seite zwei
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