The great Romantic period German composer Brahms created in his Piano Concerto No. 2 a massive expanse of grand structure and ravishingly beautiful harmony and melody. Always self-critical, he spent three years working it out, completing the opus in Vienna in 1881. He wrote to his beloved colleague Clara Schumann: "I want to tell you that I have written a very small piano concerto with a very small and pretty scherzo." Of course, what he was describing was the complete opposite of this in terms of scale, and the concerto was a huge success when Brahms himself premiered the work with the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra in 1881, subsequently performing it in many other European cities. The sublime slow movement has a big cello solo, most probably suggested by the parallel moment in Clara’s own piano concerto. Austrian composer Schubert's Symphony No. 8 (famously known as The Unfinished) is sometimes called the first ‘Romantic’ symphony due to its emphasis on the lyrical impulse within the dramatic structure of Classical sonata form. To this day, musicologists still disagree as to why Schubert didn’t complete the symphony. Some have speculated that he stopped work in the middle of the scherzo in the fall of 1822 because of illness, or that he was distracted by the inspiration for his Wanderer Fantasy for solo piano, which occupied his time and energy immediately afterwards. Whatever the reason, the two movement masterpiece that he did leave us truly does transmit a satisfying effect of completeness, and stands up as a cornerstone of the symphonic canon.
A19
The great Romantic period German composer Brahms created in his Piano Concerto No. 2 a massive expanse of grand structure and ravishingly beautiful harmony and melody. Always self-critical, he spent three years working it out, completing the opus in Vienna in 1881. He wrote to his beloved colleague Clara Schumann: "I want to tell you that I have written a very small piano concerto with a very small and pretty scherzo." Of course, what he was describing was the complete opposite of this in terms of scale, and the concerto was a huge success when Brahms himself premiered the work with the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra in 1881, subsequently performing it in many other European cities. The sublime slow movement has a big cello solo, most probably suggested by the parallel moment in Clara’s own piano concerto. Austrian composer Schubert's Symphony No. 8 (famously known as The Unfinished) is sometimes called the first ‘Romantic’ symphony due to its emphasis on the lyrical impulse within the dramatic structure of Classical sonata form. To this day, musicologists still disagree as to why Schubert didn’t complete the symphony. Some have speculated that he stopped work in the middle of the scherzo in the fall of 1822 because of illness, or that he was distracted by the inspiration for his Wanderer Fantasy for solo piano, which occupied his time and energy immediately afterwards. Whatever the reason, the two movement masterpiece that he did leave us truly does transmit a satisfying effect of completeness, and stands up as a cornerstone of the symphonic canon.
Date
02 June 2022
Time
7:30 PM
Venue
Thailand Cultural Centre, Main Hall
Orchestra
RBSO
Conductor
Michel Tilkin
Soloist
Irene Russo, Piano
Programme
Johannes Brahms:
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83
Franz Schubert:
Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D.759 "Unfinished"
Richard Wagner:
Overture - Der fliegende Holländer
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