When Beethoven Wrote Long, Technology Had To Follow

“The Ninth Symphony runs over an hour, even when performed at breakneck tempo. In the era of LP records, it generally took three sides — and hence had to be coupled with one of Beethoven’s shorter symphonies, like the Eighth, to complete a two-disc set.” With the switch to CDs, the race to fit all of the Ninth on one disc began — or so the story goes.