Secrets

Don't only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets, for it and knowledge can raise men to the divine.
–Ludwig van Beethoven


Available from The Piano Guys, on iTunes and at Amazon.
Vocal version here

From ThePianoGuys:
Story behind the song:
The American Heritage Lyceum Philharmonic (Youth Orchestra) and its director, Kayson Brown, approached us with this idea. We loved it. It combined two of the things we are working to accomplish -- inviting people to classical music and inspiring young musicians. Steven Sharp Nelson had soloed with the orchestra the previous year and loved the spirit and the talent that the orchestra showed at such young ages (ages 13-18!) Together we developed the concept of "Beethoven's 5 Secrets," combining OneRepublic's tune "Secrets" with melodies and moments from all four movements of Beethoven's 5th Symphony.

We used 5 different melodies from the 4 movements of Beethoven's 5th Symphony (not including the "bridge" the orchestra plays in the middle). Try to guess where they are and where they come from!

What are Beethoven's secrets? He had many. His most prominent secret that he desperately tried to keep from the public and that caused him to be considered extremely eccentric, irritable, and hermit-like was his "weakness." He was deaf during most of his life. Imagine that...one of the greatest composers that ever lived could hardly hear. And yet, he wrote his life's greatest works after becoming deaf. He believed that art itself had "secrets" that had to be "forced into" in order to obtain art's highest level. There is no doubt Beethoven discovered many of the "secrets" of art -- people all over the world enjoy them every day. He was a true master of music, blessed by God. This piece and video are dedicated to him.

Perform "Beethoven's 5 Secrets" and the entire Beethoven Symphony No. 5 with Steven Sharp Nelson at Lyceum Music Festival this year! Work up-close and personal with Steven and other amazing professional musicians like the concertmaster of the London Symphony and Rotterdam Orchestra. Advanced players ages 13-21 are invited to audition. Details here.

Filming locations:
The Mountains of St. George Utah
American Heritage School
TPG Studios
MetCom Studio (Behind the Scenes footage)

Credits:
Arrangement written and produced by Al van der Beek & Steven Sharp Nelson
Orchestrated by Kayson Brown & Steven Sharp Nelson
Performed by
American Heritage Lyceum Philharmonic, under the direction of Kayson Brown
Additional violin work by Julie Ann Nelson (Steven's wife!) & Matthew John Nelson (Steven's brother!)
Steven Sharp Nelson: Acoustic cello, electric cellos, percussion, vocal textures
Al van der Beek: Vocal textures, percussion
Secrets originally written by Ryan Tedder, published by SONY/ATV TUNES LLC
Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Opus 67 written by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1804-1808 and debuted in Vienna's Theater an der Wien in 1808
Orchestra recorded at MetCom Studios (http://www.metcomstudios.com)
All other instruments recorded by Al van der Beek at TPG Studios
Mixed and Mastered by Al van der Beek at TPG Studio
Video produced by Paul Anderson & Tel Stewart


Dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)