first concerto

[elevateme]

ok i need help with choosing a first concerto to learn. ive just finished gaspard and want to start on something bigger. any ideas? any would be really appreciated

[viking]

Hah, not many people I know have learned Gaspard before their first concerto.  But what are you looking for?  Something underplayed, or something that will teach you lots, or what?  I guess I would reccomend looking into the Khachaturian Piano Concerto just from personal experience.  It's really a great piece, but maybe your looking for something different.

[elevateme]

im looking for a challenge lol. i heard the kachaturian concerto for gcse mocks last month and i think its a really interesting piece, i might look into it thanks

[soliloquy]

Challenging?


Prokofiev No. 2
Prokofiev No. 5
Bartok No. 2
Barber Op. 38
Corigliano (1968)
Ginastera No. 1
Ginastera No. 2
Tchaikovsky No. 2


Those one are all good.  Then there would be the like... INSANELY challenging ones, but they're not really usable in a competition or anything.  The Ginastera 2 and Corigliano aren't really either but they're such great pieces


If it doesn't have to be a piece in the more common repertoire, check out Ligeti, Rautavaara 1, either of the Messiaen, the Rzewski, any of the Xenakis like Erikhthon or Synaphai or Keqrops (but that's probably a bit out of your league, no offense), the Nyman or one of Cage's.  Carl Vine's is a semi-decent piece, and there'a a very nice underplayed romantic era concerto by Massenet.

[jakev2.0]

Pretty ridiculous suggestions for "1st" concerto, soliloquy...but elevateme is full of crap anyway so I don't blame you.

[soliloquy]

Pretty ridiculous suggestions for "1st" concerto, soliloquy...but elevateme is full of crap anyway so I don't blame you.

Ahah if someone makes a big point of asking for some difficult piece and says they play Gaspard, then i will give them Ginastera 2 and Barber.

[jre58591]

ginastera 2 freaks me out, both in sound and by the way the sheetmusic looks.

[elevateme]

Pretty ridiculous suggestions for "1st" concerto, soliloquy...but elevateme is full of crap anyway so I don't blame you.

why are they ridiculous?

[jakev2.0]

Post a recording of yourself in the Audition Room and we'll tell you why...

[soliloquy]

Because they're the most difficult in the common/semi-common repertoire.  Prok 2 is also infamous for being impossible to execute properly live.  But they are much better pieces than Khachaturian.


If the ones I suggested are above you, look at Rachmaninov 2, Mozart 20, Beethoven 3, Prokofiev 3, Bartok 1, Tchaikovsky 1, Rachmaninov Paganini Variations, Grieg, Mendelssohn, Saint-Saens 2 or 4, Ravel or Gershwin.  Those are a lot more standard for a first major concerto.  The Brahms are a step up from those, along with Beethoven 4/5 and Ravel LH, mostly because they require a LOT of maturity.

[houseofblackleaves]

Prok. 2 is my favorite concerto (aside from the rach concerti)  The candenza is by far one of the most insane, intense, yet beautiful and passionate things I have ever heard.  Ashk and Guitierez both have made excelent recordings.  Also, at the Piano-e-competition, Victoria Korchinskaya gave a fantastic rock-solid performance (and it was live (?))

And I think that Xenakis is out of most of our league/s.  Synaphai especially.

Rzewski composed a concerto?

[jre58591]

rzewski does have a concerto. i dont know much about it though.

[jakev2.0]

I recommend Beethoven C minor.

[elevateme]

thanks

[franzliszt2]

Pretty ridiculous suggestions for "1st" concerto, soliloquy...but elevateme is full of crap anyway so I don't blame you.

Why post something like that? You've never heard him play, so why be an arse and say summit like that? He's asked a civil question and you reply like that.

Post a recording of yourself in the Audition Room and we'll tell you why...

Again why? You seem to assume he's a bad pianist. How does posting stuff in a pianosreet audition room make him better? It costs money to record, so why waste it so you can post on a piano website?


Elevateme why not do Rachmanioff pagaini Rhapsody? That was my 1st concerto, and I found it great. Tchaikovsky 1 is great fun as well, and not that hard. How about a Chopin concerto? They are great, and I think you'd learn a lot from it. Prokofiev 1 is an amazing concerto, not too long, and tricky. The Liszt concerto's are great as well, and the again no that hard.

I would recomend a shorter concerto for the 1st...say 25mins approx, just it can be weird learning concerto's at 1st, it's different from solo work, as it sounds very bare in places. Most importantly do something you really like! Otherwise you'll get very frustrated.

You could always just start with Rach 3  Nice short and easy! 

[elevateme]

Post a recording of yourself in the Audition Room and we'll tell you why...

okay, what about ondine. ive got a recording of me playing it somewhere. tell me how to put it on and i will do it.

[jakev2.0]

Is it in MP3 already? If so go to the audition room, start a new topic and attach it to the thread.

[elevateme]

saving it as mp3 now

[jakev2.0]

Cool. Looking forward to it. If it's passable, you have my apologies. 

[elevateme]

ok thanks ive done it

[jakev2.0]

My apologies. 

But I would not play something like Prok 2 anytime soon if I were you. Beethoven 3 would be a great choice.

[soliloquy]

rzewski does have a concerto. i dont know much about it though.

He has three piano+orch pieces.