Beyond the Ode to Joy ? The Politics of the European Anthem

Anthems are conventionally viewed as helping to unify and mobilise populations by generating a sense of shared identity. Beethoven's Ode to Joy , which currently serves as the European anthem, occupies a more equivocal place in the European Union's symbolic armoury. Whether performed with or without Schiller's original text, the piece raises important questions regarding the nature of the European Union and the purpose of Beethoven's music...