More wonderfulness from L.V. Beethoven.

And from Brilliant Classics.

And from Yefim Bronfman piano,
Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, and
David Zinman conductor

Beethoven Piano Concert No. 3 in C Minor Op. 37 is another tour de force for pianist Yefim Bronfman. According to its entry on Wikipedia:

The Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1800 and was first performed on 5 April 1803, with the composer as soloist. The year for which the concerto was composed (1800) has however been questioned by contemporary musicologists. It was published in 1804. During that same performance, the Second Symphony and the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives were also premiered. The composition was dedicated to Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia. The first primary theme is reminiscent of that of Mozart’s 24th Piano Concerto.

Movement I (“Allegro con brio”) of Op. 37 is an amazing composition. Dynamics up the yin-yang. Loud-soft, loud-soft. Ivory tinkling down to a whisper, and then back up again to pounding crescendo, some of which reminded of the soundtrack to an old-time (silent) movie. When the villain would show up on screen, the piano would play these low-note rumbles that indicated something was afoot. Same here.

Movement II (“Largo”) is precisely the tempo it declares itself to be. It’s about half as fast as the first movement, but very pretty. Lots of dreamy sequences.

Movement III (“Rondo Allegro”) is another wonderful melding of Continue reading →