The greatest composer of all time only lived to be 56 years of age and the Grand Maestro had so much, much more music to compose. One of the torch-bearers at Ludwig van Beethoven's funeral was the pioneering Franz Schubert who lived in the shadow of the great composer in Vienna. Schubert, himself a musical visionary, worshipped Beethoven at a distance and even though both composers lived in Vienna at the same time, there is no evidence to support that they ever met. Beethoven's 9th Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 (Ode to Joy') is the national anthem of the European Union (EU). In Japan, "Ode to Joy" is played nationwide on Christmas and New Year's Eve.