To conclude his tenure as chief conductor of the NDR Sinfonieorchester, Christoph von Dohnányi led them for the first time in a complete cycle of Beethoven’s nine symphonies. They were joined in the choral finale of the Ninth by choirs from Hamburg and Berlin, and a German-born quartet of soloists including the Hamburg-native mezzo-soprano, Michaela Kaune. ‘You always have to make Beethoven new again,’ Dohnányi remarked at the time. ‘You can never rest.’