 |
|
|
|
in the Royal Festival
Hall |
|
 |
Return to articles
menu page >
In the piano concerto Beethoven saw an opportunity explicitly
to express his world view. He pitted himself - as both composer
and soloist - against the 'tutti' of the orchestra, seizing
control of the performance as well as the music, assuming
the role of the individual (the soloist) who could influence
and inspire the masses (the orchestra). He created music that,
like his symphonies, was independent of courtly events and
celebrations. These were stand-alone masterpieces in their
own right, autonomous artworks which were forged in Beethoven's
own image. Here was the first genuinely successful freelance
composer writing to his own briefs and making his own rules;
for that oft-sought profile of Beethoven the man, we'd do
well to turn to these concertos, and imagine Ludwig himself
on the piano stool.
Like his cycle of nine symphonies, the five piano concertos
mirror the musical and personal journey of their creator.
The perfection of Mozart and Haydn flows headlong into the
first three, but already Beethoven was breaking new ground,
forcing the traditional form into shapes that better suited
the scale of his intense ideas.
And then Beethoven met with disaster. In the 'Heilingenstadt
Testament' of 1802 the composer faced up to the inevitable
- that the problems with his hearing were going to worsen
rather than ease. The composer knew that his ability to play
a concerto was slipping from him. This could have spelt the
end for his works in the form, leaving us with only numbers
one to three.
But instead, Beethoven played his trump card, conjuring two
final works of total genius, passing the baton of performance
to his soloists with scores which left pianists in no doubt
as to his intentions. Beethoven penned complete cadenzas for
the soloist (for the first time in the history of the concerto),
stamping his authority on the works' 'last word' and defiantly
continuing in his role as performer in all but the playing
of the notes. The final two concertos pack a declamatory punch,
step onto unexpected paths, liberate themselves from the Classical
rulebook, and herald 'the age of the virtuoso'; an age which
counts amongst its descendants the talents of Emanuel Ax,
Richard Goode, John Lill and Maurizio Pollini, our guest performers.
Beethoven's piano concertos during
2007/08
Wednesday 3 October 2007
Piano concerto 5
in E flat (Emperor) >
Sunday 7 October 2007 Piano concerto
4 in G
An audio sample of Beethoven's
Piano Concerto 4 can be accessed from the performance calendar
page >
Wednesday 28 November 2007 Piano
concerto 3 in C minor
An audio sample of Beethoven's
Piano Concerto 3 can be accessed from the performance calendar
page >
Wednesday 16 January 2008 Piano
concerto 2 in B flat
An audio sample of Beethoven's
Piano Concerto 2 can be accessed from the performance calendar
page >
Saturday
19 January 2008 Piano
concerto 1 in C >
Return to articles
menu page >
Back to top >
|
|
|
|
