piano concerto

[littlegrass]

as you might already have guessed, I am new to this amazing piano forum. I think i will start this off with one of my burning questions.

does any body know of any piano concerto that is relatively easy to play and to memorise but also sound great to general public?

[schnabels_grandson]

I don't know if you want an entire concerto, but the  first movement of Bach's concerto in D minor is relatively easy to memorize.  The second movement is also easy and the third I haven't tried yet.  

[littlegrass]

yeah, I meant the entire piano concerto.
how about romantic or modern pieces? apart from Rapsody in blue and Grieg A monir....

[Rach3]

Try Shostakovich 2.

[chsmike2345]

Try Rach 3. Hehehe just kidding  

[littlegrass]

yeah, Rach 3 I'll just get my hi-fi out , put it behind the percussion section and pretend to play like whatever is coming out fromthe cd.....

[Rach3]

That was neither funny nor original. It's all about the big NAMES, no one cares to even glance at the brilliant and remarkably pianistic writing, it's just "rach 3 hehehe just kidding" or non-sarcastic things like "don't even look at rach3 you'll be dead in minutes!!!" and stuff and I think it's all because of that movie. These are the same people who go around hacking "extreme" music like Islamey and Scarbo just because it's "cool" (I think I have read more posts about Sorabji and Ligeti than Schumann).

[littlegrass]

I can see from your "name", Rach 3 may be one of your favourites, it is also one of my favourites.
Pianists don't have to write pianstically because at the end of the day, they are human and this means they have more to them than just the pianistic side.
And it wasn't all about the "big NAMES" because there is a difference between "being scared of it" and "physically not fit enough to perform it in front of hundreds of people". Sorry if I had up set you but one should always understand the entire story before criticising.

[chsmike2345]

Whoa whoa whoa. Rach3, you don't think you're going to get away with an attack like that, do you? First off, I worship Rachmaninoff, think he's the best composer of all time, and love all of his music. Secondly, out of Rachmaninoff's compositions, I think the third concerto is the best in terms of emotional qualities, which I believe is the most important part of music. So, you offend me by saying that I am in anyway putting down the third concerto. Please, don't think you are the only one in this forum who knows and understands the depth of emotional qualities, the difficulty of technicalities, and the overall overwhelming effect of the Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3. In addition, I never made comments like "don't try the rach3 or you'll be dead in minutes." Yes, I did see the movie Shine is that's what you're referring to, and I think it was an amazing movie to understand the life of a musician and the emotional qualities and motivations it gives, but no, I don't believe all of the things said in the movie are accurate, as Hollywood rarely is. And what do you mean by "hacking" and "extreme music"? I am not "dissing" any music; for I know, as well as you, that composers know much more than we know, and we should learn, not criticize. What is "extreme music"? Anyone that uses such a term is putting down and insulting music themselves, which does not help. There is no such thing as extreme music. Just a composer who has so much emotion that he creates such a wonderful creation that no one, or few can understand, much less enjoy. I'm not trying to make any enemies here, and I believe all musicians, especially if they play and enjoy the same instrument, should join together, not fall apart, because you probably know better than I how challenging and difficult it is to make it in the piano world. We should all support each other, for the better emotional state you are in, the more you feel and express the music. I commend littlegrass for trying to bring all of us together.

Michael Yu

[Armand]

Hi Michael Yu and the rest,

When you make a statement like "yeah, Rach 3 I'll just get my hi-fi out , put it behind the percussion section and pretend to play like whatever is coming out fromthe cd..... " you are actually saying: look at me, look how good I am, this music only serves my EGO.

What is there about music?

Anyway, I believe the question was: does anybody know a playable concerto that sounds good?

You didn't write what your level/repertoire is, so giving suggestions will not be that easy. There are a lot of great concerto's out there. Maybe you can provide us with more details about your current pieces?

regards,
Armand

[littlegrass]

whatever "look at me, look how good I am, this music only serves my EGO." meant in the previous comment, it certainly was a very narrow minded interpretation of the other quoted statement. the people I know personally who associate "EGO" to anything in particular are either those who have the "EGO" thing themselves, or they always see things in a negative way the first time. but I dare not put you in the category because I don't know you really. just to let you know, the word "EGO" had never crossed my mind.

"What is there about music?"
well, music is about communication, if whoever played in the cd was able to bring out the depth of the emotion of the piece and communicate to whatever audience there is, then that already is music.

also: "I believe the question was: does anybody know a playable concerto that sounds good?"

that was not exactly the question beause:

1) the word "playable" is very subjective, according to your own ability, and I used "relatively easy", that doesn't mean "playable" automatically.  
2) if people were to view that question negatively, then they will think that that is a very unfair comment. because they would then say that one should not criticise a piece of work unless they can produce works that are better, if not at them same level.

Anyway, I already had 1 or 2 in mind and I just wanted to have a few more suggestions from others so that my choice is broader. Obviously I will choose one that I can cope with. Whatever level I am at, there is no need to tell anybody because people can make up their own mind when they hear me play.

Let's get on with some more suggestions.

[ALVARO_M]

try with the 2nd movement of mozart piano concerto no.21

that is easy  

[Dave_2004_G]

And very beautiful, if not slightly cliched!

Dave

[littlegrass]

how about these:

Beethoven piano concerto No.1 in C
Schumann Op.54 in a
Mendelssohns in d

which one do you like listening to most?  

[BoliverAllmon]

And very beautiful, if not slightly cliched!

Dave

Mozart is not easy. His music demands perfection. It sounds easy, but only certain people can bring the true beauty of the piece. Mozart composed in a way that any little mistake is magnified 100 fold.

boliver

[Dave_2004_G]

Yes I agree - I suppose an immediate difficulty with this would be keeping the chords in the left hand quiet - but certainly in terms of notes the piece is easy

Dave

[allchopin]

only certain people can bring the true beauty of the piece.

Ok I don't get it- I have heard this in every other thread and it's mother.  What piece DOESN'T require beauty in playing?  I'd say this is a given, then, eh?

[The Tempest]

- Schumann Op. 54

- Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

[chsmike2345]

You guys are saying Schuman and rachmaninoff are easy?
I played schuman, dropped it, and picked it back up. It's definitely not what I would call "easy", as the first lines after the huge chords take so much emotion in themselves...
Rachmaninoff? Never Easy. Period.
Anyway, no piece is "easy" to play, just easy to learn.
To master any piece takes so much more.

[BoliverAllmon]

I agree the notes may be easy on the Mozart, but artistically it is difficult. Yes, all pieces need to be musical, but some pieces are more difficult to make difficult. There are many pianists who fake their way through pieces and only a select few know this. On the other hand Mozart makes sure that no one can fake through his music. You must know what you are doing. Oh and getting off tempo destroys his pieces.

boliver

[steinwaymodeld]

This topic have been developed into a Rach3+Shine+Is David Helgoft really that good argument

ANd i am not getting into that
(Or maybe someimtes else, )

The comparatively easier concerto i would recommend is Grieg Concerto in A, it's emotionally very rich, and not as techincally difficult as Rach3 or Tch1, neither structurly difficult as Mozart No.23

ALso, some beethoven Concerto are not that bad neither.(Not invovled Emperor)

[Noah]

- Schumann Op. 54

- Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

These are ridiculous suggestions.

[littlegrass]

haha it's good to read all these suggestions and comments. I think many people have got me wrong. mey be I shouldn't use "relatively easy" becasue people just read the "easy" bit but forgot about the "relatively" bit.

has anybody heard or played Mendelssohn piano concerto in d minor?

[eddie92099]

- Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Yes, good suggestion. How about Bartok 2 for a nice easy concerto as well?  ,
Ed

[Rach3]

Littlegrass, I apologize for my comment, I was a bit overzealous and misinterpreted your light humor.

What does "relatively easy" mean here? Paganini Rhapsody definetly does not belong here, and in my opinion Beethoven 1 is a difficult concerto musically, it's impossible to fake and it demands a lot from the artist. If we are considering the Grieg as relatively easy, we might as well add Liszt 1, it's a severly underplayed piece. The late Mozart F major is a very impressive and shows off some serious fast technique but unforunately its difficult; probably not as bad as Grieg, though. Macdowell d minor is quite obscure, "relatively" easy, and quite idiomatic. There's also the Saint-Saens, which I don't know much about. Shost 2 is much easier than any of these, all three movements are quite easy yet the audience will still be quite impressed.

[steinwaymodeld]

Littlegrass, I apologize for my comment, I was a bit overzealous and misinterpreted your light humor.

What does "relatively easy" mean here? Paganini Rhapsody definetly does not belong here, and in my opinion Beethoven 1 is a difficult concerto musically, it's impossible to fake and it demands a lot from the artist. If we are considering the Grieg as relatively easy, we might as well add Liszt 1, it's a severly underplayed piece. The late Mozart F major is a very impressive and shows off some serious fast technique but unforunately its difficult; probably not as bad as Grieg, though. Macdowell d minor is quite obscure, "relatively" easy, and quite idiomatic. There's also the Saint-Saens, which I don't know much about. Shost 2 is much easier than any of these, all three movements are quite easy yet the audience will still be quite impressed.

Rach3, all the famous Concerto are easy, for Grieg, technically compare to Liszt, Rachmaninoff Brahms, Tch1, Ravel LH all that, it should be considered as 'relativly easier', as well as the Chopin Concerto.

Not one says it's 'twinkle twinkle little star' easy.

The famous Yellow River Piano Concerto is another 'relatively easier' concerto that sounds good.

[littlegrass]

No worries Rach3, I think that kind of thing was the whole point of this forum (in fact,  this kind of thing is always expected in forums in general.)

since there are so many comments (some may be contradicting) about different piano concertoes and I think this is partly due to different interpretation of the whole "relatively easy" (RE) thing......
may be it's time for me to try and define "relatively easy" in the context of this topic.

I think I did associate "to play and to memorise" to RE. the "memorise" bit is self explanatory, the "play" bit means I neither have big hands, nor flexible hands like I think it was ed, who mentioned about stretching his thumb from his index finger under his palm to the little finger end to play some freaking chords... (do let me if it wasn't you ed...)

[BoliverAllmon]

I believe he was speaking of rachmaninoff.

boliver

[eddie92099]

There's also the Saint-Saens, which I don't know much about.

There are five,
Ed

[The Tempest]

And there's ones by John Field and Anton Rubinstein that I don't think anyone knows about, including me. >_>

[eddie92099]

And there's ones by John Field and Anton Rubinstein that I don't think anyone knows about, including me. >_>

I think there are four Rubinstein concerti (or even five?),
Ed

[Rach3]

The Rubinstein d minor (I think his 3rd) is the only one regulary heard, and for good reason according to my piano teacher. Personally I don't appreciate the d minor either, it's not very interesting and a bit tasteless.

[thracozaag]

The Rubinstein d minor (I think his 3rd) is the only one regulary heard, and for good reason according to my piano teacher. Personally I don't appreciate the d minor either, it's not very interesting and a bit tasteless.

 It's the 4th.  There's a terrific performance by Hofmann (who studied with Rubinstein) at his Golden Jubliee concert.

[comme_le_vent]

if you want a short simple one just try the busoni.
or try korngolds, cos u only have to learn one hand.
seriously try the slow mvt from rach 2, that sounds good and easy.

[Chopinkid]

Beethoven's Third Concerto in C minor is a great choice; It's not tough technically but there is a lot of opportunity to show your musicality.  The only drawback is that it is played often.  

[eddie92099]

if you want a short simple one just try the busoni.

or try korngolds, cos u only have to learn one hand.
 

Or the Ravel Left Hand concerto, that's another easy one. Simple cadenza in fact. How about Prokofiev 4? Or Britten's Diversions...
Ed  

[Rach3]

Don't bother messing with an orchestra, try the Alkan concerto.

[eddie92099]

You've just put that first theme in my head  ,
Ed

[Noah]

Beethoven's Third Concerto in C minor is a great choice; It's not tough technically but there is a lot of opportunity to show your musicality.  The only drawback is that it is played often.  

The third movement is not easy.

[dorota_kattowitz]

I also agree that the yellow river piano concerto sounds very good, it is a representative work of modern Chinese orchestral music yet it is not too difficult to tackle (the chords shructures are as difficult as Chopin concerto and not as complex as the 20th century music such as Rachmaninov, Prokofiev and Bartok.

However the only problem is getting hold of the score!!!  Are you aware of any way I can get hold of the score?

Thanks you sooooooooooooo much ofr your help!

Rach3, all the famous Concerto are easy, for Grieg, technically compare to Liszt, Rachmaninoff Brahms, Tch1, Ravel LH all that, it should be considered as 'relativly easier', as well as the Chopin Concerto.

Not one says it's 'twinkle twinkle little star' easy.

The famous Yellow River Piano Concerto is another 'relatively easier' concerto that sounds good.

[mike_lang]

Start with Grieg.  One of the best written concertos for piano and orchestra (beside Tchaikovsky).  I know that's bound to start some arguments, so let me clarify a little bit before the storm hits: I refer to the balance between piano and orchestra, and the way they work together.  I.E., Chopin Concerto in e minor is, IMO, a sloppily written concerto, but would have been wonderful as a solo piece.  Food for thought...

Besides that, it is one of the easier concerti to both play and memorize.  Again IMO, it is one of the most rewarding for its price.

Best,
Michael

[Motrax]

You'll notice this topic is from 2003, so the best suggestions at this point would still be rather without purpose. Please don't post here anymore, and let this topic RIP.