15 Favourite Concertos

[vaneramos]

It's a good thing I didn't post my list of favourite concertos right away, because I hadn't given it as much careful thought and several would have been omitted. I had to increase the list size to 15. Here my taste is much more varied, ranging from Classicism to Contemporary Minimalism. We're starting from the top again:

1. Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B Minor
   No contest here. The cello is perhaps my favourite instrument. Dvorak is one of my favourite composers, and this sweet, lyrical concerto is one of his masterpieces, in fact an outstanding masterpiece of the 19th Century. My recording: Julian Lloyd Webber, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Vaclav Neumann.


2. Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor
   Of course the piano is my instrument, and Rachmaninoff my preferred piano composer. No. 3 is my favourite for the peculiar opening theme and the careening finale. Guilty pleasure. My recording: Lazar Berman, London Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado.
   
3. Saint-Saens: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor
   Hard choice between this and No. 5, both deliciously exotic. But the mysterious introduction is one of my favourite piano movements. The rest is plain fun. My recording: Pascal Rogé, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Dutoit.


4. Poulenc: Concerto in D Minor for Two Pianos
   More delight: French naughtiness with exotic gamelan music. The second movement starts off sounding like a Mozart andante and gradually falls into depravity. My recording: James Anagnoson & Leslie Kinton, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Raffi Armenian.


5. Rodrigo: Concierto Andaluz
   More appealing to me than the other two more famous guitar concertos. The Spanish rhythms are irresistible. My recording: Los Romeros, San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, Victor Alessandro.


6. Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B Major
   Symphonic in scale. Even if the whole thing weren't a masterpiece, I would have to include this for the cello solo in the slow movement, one of my favourite melodies. My recording: Gaza Anda, Berlin Philharmonic, Herbert von Karajan


7. Barber: Violin Concerto
   Bittersweet as late afternoon sunshine on leaves in September. My recording: Gil Shaham, London Symphony Orchestra, André Previn


8. Beethoven: Violin Concerto
   A sentimental favourite since I heard it performed years ago by Isaac Stern with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. I don't own a recording.


9. Schumann: Piano Concerto in A Minor
   Schumann didn't let virtuosity obscure poetic lyricism. My recording: Martha Argerich, National Symphony Orchestra, Mstislav Rostropovich


10. Greig: Piano Concerto in A Minor.
    A few concertos were overplayed at home when I was growing up: Rachmaninoff's 2nd, Tchaikovsky's 2nd and the Greig, but it transcends familiarity. I have always loved it. My recording: Bella Davidovich, Seattle Symphony, Gerard Schwarz.


11. Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D Minor
    The only concerto by my favourite composer, this is classic Sibelius, highly distinctive: shadowy and austere as a Northern landscape. My recording: Nigel Kennedy, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Simon Rattle


12. Glass: Violin Concerto
    Exciting minimalist piece. Thanks to draco_kc for introducing me to this. My recording: Adele Anthony, Ulster Orchestra, Takuo Yuasa.


13. Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major
    I judge the Mozart concertos by their slow movements. Bookended between two bright outer movements is this melancholy adagio, my favourite. I don't own a recording.
    
14. Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major
    Compare this to Poulenc's Concerto For Two Pianos. They both premiered in 1932 and share a sense of Parisian coquettishness. However this piece is more serious and was clearly influenced by George Gershwin. The dreamy slow movement is unforgettable; its simplicity belies the fact that Ravel deliberated over every note. This concerto is relatively new to me. It will undoubtedly move higher in my list. My recording: Pascal Rogé, Orchestra symphonique du Montréal, Charles Dutoit.
    
15. Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat Major
    I had a hard choice here among 3, 4 and 5. At another time, in another mood, I would choose differently. My recording: Wilhelm Kempff, Berlin Philharmonic, Ferdinand Leitner.

Comments

[stephe.livejournal.com]

Another great list. I prefer Ravel's Paino Concert for the Left Hand to the G Major, but it's a close call. Do you have any opinions on the Shostakovich Cello Concertos? I know some people who love them (like me) and some who really despise them.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately I don't know them. Generally I like Shostakovich's music, but I've never become familiar with it.