Beethovenfest

Though the work was written late in Beethoven's career, he adopted the traditional style of the French overture, with a slow introduction followed by a vigorous fugue. Conceived for efficiency's sake as an alternative overture to his earlier work "The Ruins of Athens" (Op. 113), "Consecration of the House" is stylistically reminiscent of Baroque composers before him, particularly Handel.

The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, conducted by Paavo Järvi, performed the overture in the Beethovenhalle in Bonn as part of the 2007 Beethovenfest.