John Eliot Gardiner's Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique plays Beethoven on period instruments at what he believes to be the composer's intended tempo[1][2][3]. I'm really just a casual listener, but it's my understanding that the period instruments are built for higher tempo. In any event I really like everything I've heard from him.
i just googled beethoven at the right tempo and got a bunch of videos.
I generally prefer music that sounds too fast or too slow at first listen, so I'm excited to go through these.
One thing that I didnt't see mentioned, probably because it is Beethoven, is that musicians do tend to speed up their songs over time. If you see some bands that have been around a while playing their old hits, many times it will be faster than the record. I had always assumed that the original writer of the song was annoyed at the impatient drummer that sped things up, but maybe it applies.
Does anyone have examples of such recordings?