Who are the great composers of concertos?  Which concertos are
your favorites?

39 responses total.

Bach. Brandenburg.

I've always liked Mozart's - some of the few pieces of his that I really like
are the horn concertos.  

Mozart's piano concertos are da bomb.  #24 is my favorite.

All right, a question for Those Who Know Such Things.  On the radio this
morning was a Vivaldi concerto that I liked a lot, for 2 clarinets, 2
recorders, guitar, harpsichord, and strings (if I deciphered the announcers
comments correctly)
2 question - firstly, why is such a piece called a concerto, when it doesn't
have the soloist/orchestra structure that concertos are supposed to have? 
And secondly, does anyone know if this is enough information to figure out
what piece it is?  I missed part of the announcement due to conversation in
the back seat...

Perhaps it was a "concerto grosso", which was sort of the baroque
forerunner of the modern symphony. A concerto grosso is a piece
for the orchestra as a whole.

Vivaldi wrote fifty bazillion such things, so no, I don't think that
knowing the instrument breakdown is enough information to identify
the work.

Ah well...  Actually, the announcer did identify it by number (forty bazillion
and some-odd, I belive :), but I don't remember it.  Oh well...

The baroque concerto is a small group of instruments playing accompanied
by the "whole" (tutti). 

Sometimes the word "tutti" includes the soloist.  In a solo 
concerto -- say, a violin concerto -- the solo part has it's 
own line in the score.  The word "tutti" isn't used at all 
unless the concertmaster has a solo, at which point the language 
is: "solo" when the solo starts and "tutti" when the first violins 
all join with the concertmaster once again.  In a concerto
grosso, the smaller group of soloists is called the "concertino"
or "concertante," and the larger group that alternates with the 
soloists is called the "tutti" or the "ripieno."  

The terminology gets fuzzy sometimes.  For example, Bartok's
Concerto for Orchestra is a kind of concerto grosso, with soloists
alternating with the full orchestra, but the language in the score
is "solo" and "tutti" in the modern sense.  The soloists "step
forward," so to speak, then rejoin their comrades.  Samuel Barber's
Capricorn Concerto, on the other hand, is a true concerto grosso
with soloists (flute, oboe, trumpet) alternating with the tutti,
or ripieno (strings).  

 Mozart is a concerto gangster.

 But I'm with rcurl on this one. Bach is a concerto God!!! 

Re #8: Thanks for the explanation - my memory was a tad hazy on
the meaning of "concerto grosso".

Sibelius's Violin Concerto

Bartok's Violin Concerto.

(*My* violin concerto can beat up *your* violin concerto!  ;)

Bartok wrote two violin concertos.  Someone in Dr Remmers'
generation would've started listening to Bartok before the
first violin concerto was rediscovered, so I think he probably
means what is now known as Bartok's Second Violin Concerto,
which can indeed beat up the Sibelius.  In Finno-Ugric, no less.

I like Samuel Barber's violin concerto.  I've concluded the reason
it's topping the charts lately is that there have been so many
new recordings of it in such a short period of time, and that
it's tunefulness is so extreme that it borders on light classical.
That, and the pictures of various members of the new generation
of cutie-pie violinists on the CD covers.  Barber's piano concerto
is his masterpiece, but it's a bit thorny for most people.  He
also wrote a cello concerto which I'm not crazy about, except the
second movement.  

There I go again: I mean "its tunefulness."  I have a short-
circuit upstairs about that one.

I suppose Bartok and Sibelius would have Finno-Ugrik in common. But 
let's save that for the language item. OK, I will have to pay 
more attention to the Bartok. I do love the Sibelius.

And my ancestry can be traced (in part) to Hungary, but not Finland, so 
I should convert unless I'm a traitor. I had a lot of trouble with 
Bartok's music when I was younger. I do like some of the Bartok I have 
exposed myself to more recently.

I've found that people who took piano lessons as kids and were
required to play Bartok's "Mikrokosmos" series of graded exercises,
may end up with an almost incurable dislike for Bela's music.  Was
"Mikrokosmos" inflicted on you, Steven?

Bartok's 3 piano concertos are all great, but I love #2 best, 
especially the transcendantly creepy 2nd movement.  There's nothing
else quite like it in all of music, except for Charles Ives's
"Central Park in the Dark."

Dunno about Steven, but "Mikrokosmos" was "inflicted" on me, and
I loved it. A couple of years ago I re-purchased the whole six-volume
set, as some of my old books had gotten lost over the years.

And some people loved it.

I never had Mikrokosmos inflicted on me, although I did play a few cute little
Bartok pieces that might have been from that series...that's actually what
got me interested in Bartok.

No, Bartok's Mikrokosmos was not inflicted on me. I'm not sure how I 
would have responded. Nor am I sure why I had such an early dislike. 

Ravel wrote two excellent piano concertos, a light one in
G major and a somewhat heavier one in D major.  The latter
is the famous "Concerto for Left Hand" that Ravel wrote for
pianist Paul Wittgenstein (brother of philosopher Ludwig)
who lost his right arm in the First World War.  Ravel's idea
was to confine much of the main melodic material to the bass,
which is where the left hand mostly hangs out.  It works.

Ravel also wrote a piece for violin and orchestra called
"Tzigane" ("Gypsy"), a really hilarious parody of the gypsy
violinist pieces then in vogue.  Check it out.

Some concertos aren't called concertos.  For example, Leonard
Bernstein's second symphony is called: "Symphony #2 for Piano 
and Orchestra, 'The Age of Anxiety.'"  It's based on a poem by
W.H. Auden, supposedly.  There's way too much orchestra in it
for it to be called a concerto, but the piano, when it's playing,
is so crucial that the whole thing functions as a kind of
concerto.

What else -- Berlioz's Harold in Italy, I guess.  Any others?

(I didn't know that those two Wittgensteins were related...that's neat)

I was listening to Schumann's piano concerto recently.  A splendid
piece of music.  Related to it is Grieg's piano concerto in the same
key (A minor), written in conscious imitation of the Schumann, I'm
told.  Stravinsky wrote a couple of piano concerti during his "neo-
classical" period.  I used to be crazy about them.  Prokofiev composed
five piano concerti, of which #3 is the best known.  I heard it in
concert many years ago with some forgotten sovpianist at the keyboard
and it blew me away.  He also wrote a couple of violin concerti.
Prokofiev's 4th piano concerto is for left hand only, composed for
Paul Wittgenstein, the same guy who commissioned the vastly superior
left-hand concerto by Maurice Ravel.  Btw, I know there are some
listeners desperate not to be judged "incorrect" in their tastes
who reject Ravel without listening to him because he composed that
famous pot-boiler, you know, whatsitsname.  Huge mistake.  He was
one of the greatest composers of our century.

Sir Malcolm Arnold wrote the Concerto for 2 Pianos (3 Hands), Op. 104 for
pianists Phyllis Sellick and Cyril Smith (to be performed at the 1969 Proms).
Cyril Smith had lost his left hand in an aircraft-related problem.

Personally, my favorite concertos are Rachmaninoff's piano concertos,
especially the 1st movement of the fourth concerto.

Probably after the Rachmaninoff comes Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, the Warsaw
Concerto (Addinsell, I believe?), Chopin's first concerto, and the
Khatchaturian piano concerto (the second movement has a flexiphone solo! --
it's a spooky-sounding passage).  Of course, these are just the few that
spring to mind.  I'm sure I'm forgetting some of my other favorites.

I need to make a list of things to look for at the library off of this item!

(Re 25: What's the title of that famous pot-boiler by Ravel?  I'm wondering
if it's the same piece I'm thinking of.)

Bolero.

Interesting that you should like the 1st mvt of Rachmaninov's 4th
piano concerto.  The 4th has never enjoyed the popularity of the
2nd and 3rd and the Paginini Rhapsody, but for that very reason it
can take a listener by surprise.  The 1st movement is the only
piece I've ever heard bring all activity in a record shop to a halt.
"Oh, God, what's *that*?" a woman asked.  "Rachmaninov's 4th piano
concerto," answered the shop owner.  "I love *everyything* he
ever wrote!" exclaimed the smitten lady.  (It was the climactinc
[climactic] passage toward the end.]

Good, it's the same Ravel piece I was thinking of.  Just wanted to make sure
I wasn't crazy or anything...

I didn't even know a fourth concerto existed until I was browsing in SKR and
saw it there.  Before I had only thought there were three, as one can often
find recordings of the three concertos together, or there's even the
orchestral score that's been published of the first three concertos, leaving
out the fourth...  It's a great piece.  I checked out the score from the U
of M music library to play through bits and pieces and follow along, and I
love the opening theme so much that I made a copy of those pages to keep at
home.  I'd love to see it performed... I saw the third piano concerto
performed last year by the DSO: it was an incredible experience.  One of the
most memorable concerts I've ever been to.  The pianist was pounding on the
keys so passionately during the cadenza of the first movement (he chose the
fuller, bigger, slower one like on the Ashkenazy recording instead of the
lighter schertzo-like one on the Rachmaninoff recording or the Martha
Argerich recording) and the closing passage of the third movement that he
was literally bouncing off of the bench!  I'm really looking forward to
the DSO's performance of Rachmaninoff's first piano concerto this coming
season.  That's a great story about the woman in the record store!  I
think I can imagine that happening...

Speaking of concertos... it being Gershwin's 100th birthday there are a lot
of Gershwin performances going on this season.  At the end of September the
San Francisco Symphony (I think) is performing at Hill Auditorium.  One of
the pieces they're playing is the Gershwin Second Rhapsody for Piano and
Orchestra.  I've never heard the piece, so I checked at the public library
to see if there was a recording to check out, but there's not, and at U of
M the only recording is non-circulating.  So, I think I might just buy a
recording.  Does anybody recommend a particular recording of this piece, or
should I just see what's available and go from there?

Beethoven's Triple Concerto.
All the Rachmaninov piano concertos.

Oh, and also Mendelssohn's violin concerto and Bruch's first violin concerto
(I have both of these on one disc, which is why I tend to group them together)
The first movement of the Bruch is another piece high on my list of the most
beautifully melancholy music ever written.

I love much of Mendelssohn's music, but his Violin Concerto grates on 
me: this was the single piece of evidence that most convinced me that I 
just don't like violin concertos, as a rule.  Best of a bad lot: 
Beethoven's, and Philip Glass's.  (Yes, Glass.  Most violin concertos 
are full of needer-needer, knit one purl two, music anyway, so who 
could do it better than a minimalist?)

How about the Bach Double Violin Concerto? 

(Mary sees Michael rolling his eyes.)

Mary: I don't place Baroque music under the strictures I wrote above.  
Bach's concertos are fine by me, likewise Vivaldi's.

I'm personally not very familiar with many violin concertos, but I've heard
the Sibelius concerto a few times, and I like that one.  Also, Bartok's violin
concerto has a wonderful opening theme, and then it becomes very... Bartok.
Which can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you feel towards
Bartok's music.

Hey, I really like the Bach Double Violin Concerto.  It's probably
the piece of classical music that triggered my interested in the genre.
The last time I heard it in concert was about 6 weeks ago, in 
London.  It was a candlelight performance in St. Martin's Church.
We were first row, nave. 'Twas wonderful.

Just who are you calling a nave?  :)

I agree that it was a wonderful concert. The Bach Double Violin Conerto
is a favorite of mine. Back in my violin-playing days (high school, but
not since) I performed the first movement with a friend.

Bartok's Violin Concerto is another favorite of mine, although I haven't
heard it in years.

For a while there I was thinking that I just didn't like the 
concertos which featured one instrument, but I recently heard a 
Mozart Violin Concerto on the radio and was rather pleased with it.
Of course I did not note down what it was or who performed it.
Any suggestions?

Mozart wrote 5 violin concertos, all pretty much at the same time, and 
as a result they're much more alike than his piano concertos.  If you 
like one, you'll probably like them all.

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