Help! Which Concerto should I play?

[toilet77]

Hi everybody. I appreciate you all taking your time to help me in my pianistic endeavors. I am having a hard time choosing which Concerto to play right now. To be honest, it will be the first concerto I have played, so I do not want to take on too big of a concerto first or an overplayed one as well, but still find an effective one that will do well in competitions.

Here are the choices currently:

Rubinstein No.4
Moszkowski Piano Concerto
Prokofiev No.3 ( A difficult for reading)

If anyone has any other concertos that they highly recommend please feel free to share!
I am mainly looking for very passionate and effective concertos that will catch the judges' attention.

Thank you!
 

[thalbergmad]

Judging by your forum name, I would suggest the Schumann

In order to assist, it might be best for you to advise us of what solo pieces you have mastered. The concertos you list would not normally be first concertos.

Thal

[stevebob]

.

[argerichfan]

What an odd choice of name.  (Time out for a chuckle.)

I agree with Thal- they don't much look like 'first' concertos to me.  The Moszkowski is horrendously difficult, and unless you can toss off the cascades of notes with aplomb, no jury will be impressed.  

[pocho]

Hi everybody. I appreciate you all taking your time to help me in my pianistic endeavors. I am having a hard time choosing which Concerto to play right now. To be honest, it will be the first concerto I have played, so I do not want to take on too big of a concerto first or an overplayed one as well, but still find an effective one that will do well in competition

Then I think you better start coming up with another list.

[pianist1976]

Any well played concerto will catch the attention of any (competent) jury.

Of course, I'd not be brave enough to play the Prokofiev 3rd as my first piano concerto. My first concerto ever was Beethoven's 3rd. I still absolutely love it and I don't regret choosing it as my first.

In brief, in my opinion you must not think in how to impress a jury by the originality and fireworks of your repertoire, just think on playing well whatever you play and playing well whatever are the works you can afford. Choose your repertoire using artistic parameters, not extra-musical parameters such as "how to impress a jury". Don't discard "easier" repertoire. This doesn't mean that you musn't play Rubinstein's 4th, I only mean that you must choose it only if you feel that you want to play it, not (only) because it is rarely played and it is virtuosistic.

Van Cliburn won the Tchaikovski competition playing Appasionata sonata, Tchaikovski's 1st and Rach 3 (among other works). Original election? Of course not! But his playing was simply different (and great). People will never be boring of the masterworks, they just will be boring of the boring interpretations

[toilet77]

In regards to my name, the toilet has always been a funny and odd fascination to me ever since I was in elementary school. Therefore, I usually keep most of my usernames as something related to toilets.

In regards to pianist 1976: Yes i understand completely what you are saying. I have looked at Beethoven's 3rd, but every year 2 or 3 people always play it. The way i see it with the less played concertos is that judges will take note of the "unorthodox" choice. If i played per say Rach2, they will have heard it thousands of times already and grow tiresome of it. I don't know, it probably is not the right way to think of it, but I do really like those three concertos as well. But thanks for your input.

The solo pieces I am currently working on are:
Chopin Sonata 3.
Ravel Scarbo

I am not worried as much of the technical difficulty of the piece as compared to the musicality and ensemble with the orchestra as my first concerto. Though i understand that I should probably take on Saint Saens or Beethoven as my first one, many other pianists that i know have already played many of those for the middle levels for the competition. I hope I am not being too pretentious in my choices as a first concerto. I have been playing piano for almost 9 years now and I have experience in performing violin concertos with the orchestras.. just never piano, partially because my teacher does not do many of the concerto competition, but now has started.
But please expound on the difficulties that each piece poses, as i am not too well versed in the playing of the piece itself, but just listened to them and liked what i was hearing.


Thanks!

[orangesodaking]

Ruby 4!

But some concerto competitions have certain concerti you have to choose from, and they're usually the standard ones. Have you looked at specific concerto competitions you plan on entering? See if there are restrictions on what concerti you can play or not.

[toilet77]

No, I believe there are not. Thank you for your opinion, have you listened to the moszkowski before though?

[orangesodaking]

No, I haven't, but I will soon.

[mikey6]

Why not a Mozart?

[amelialw]

My 1st concerto was Schumann's Piano Concerto....and that was only because I asked my teacher for a Mozart and she said...how about a Beethoven Piano Concerto? and i was like I already have a Beethoven Piano Sonata (op.2 no.2)....

My 2nd one was Mozart no.26 (coronation)

3rd Beethoven 1st (because i needed it for competition)

now: Grieg

Why not Mozart or Beethoven?

[thalbergmad]

Coz he don't want an overplayed one.

Thal

[toilet77]

I was looking for more of a romantic one and yes not played too often.

But so far I have only gotten one response between the choices of Moszkowski and Rubinstein 4. Please share on which one of those you believe would be the most effective.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

I was looking for more of a romantic one and yes not played too often.

But so far I have only gotten one response between the choices of Moszkowski and Rubinstein 4. Please share on which one of those you believe would be the most effective.

My suggestion (it's one I would like to learn properly, so I suppose I apologise for promoting a personal favourite!) would be Liapunov 2. As with most romantic concerti it's reasonably testing, but at the same time it's not on the difficulty level of some. I think it fits the "passionate and effective" criteria.

Here's a link to the first part:

[thalbergmad]

It is difficult to know what to suggest since there is a choice of hundreds.

Only this morning i was listening to Schytte & Winding and thinking what effective and brilliant concerti they were.

Thal

[ronde_des_sylphes]

It is difficult to know what to suggest since there is a choice of hundreds.

Only this morning i was listening to Schytte & Winding and thinking what effective and brilliant concerti they were.

Thal

Yes, I agree. There are so many! However he'll have to bear in mind that he may need to locate orchestral parts; could be difficult for some of the more obscure ones.

[toilet77]

I listened to the Lyapunov. It is very nice,but I do not know whether its one movement structure will be accepted.

Right I have my mind pretty much set on either Moszkowski and Rubinstein no.4
I just can't seem to decide! I really need input!

[thalbergmad]

I prefer the Moszkowski myself, but you really have to make up your own mind here. I doubt if either have been played in competition.

The Rubinstein 4 has probably been recorded more often, but i cannot listen to it any more since it was destroyed by Hamelin.

Thal

[gardenvarietycynic]

I've recently been enchanted by the Kabalevsky 3rd, subtitled "Youth" by the composer, an annotation which I think has resulted in it being unfairly neglected by supposedly "serious" students. It's rich with melody, modestly technical and more than a little dazzling at moments. It's the concerto I wish I debuted with...as apposed to that trite silly cheeky charming Shostakovich 2nd. 

[richard black]

How nice to see someone else flying the flag for Kabalevsky 3rd! Played it myself once in a competition (which I had no intention or expectation of winning, I might add).

But to return to the original poster: if you are thinking of entering serious competitions and entering to win, just forget it with the Rubinstein and Moszkowski. The repertoire people play to win competitions is about 20 pieces and they're all the usual suspects - Prokofiev 1 and 3, Tchaik 1, Beethoven 4 and 5, Rach 2, 3 and Paganini, Chopin - and so on. Even Bartok is a bit dodgy.

If on the other hand you want to have some fun rather than winning necessarily, take something out-of-the-way - as long as you are being accompanied on a second piano. The orchestra won't know the Ruby and Moszk, won't have the parts and probably won't have the time (or inclination) to learn either.

[avetma]

If it's your first concerto, then put aside ideas like Prokofiev 3rd, Rubinstein 4th, Rachmaninoff 3rd or Saint-Saens 3rd. Go with something you can master really well and what shouldn't give much of a headache to put together with orchestra.

I would recommend something like kabalevsky 3rd, some mozart, beethoven first, mendelssohn first, hummel...

[pocho]

If my memory does not fail me, the Hartmann could fit your requirements.

[point of grace]

mmmm, you could listen to the saint saens 5th

[mikey6]

Mozart's not particularly over played when you have 27 to choose from!  But if you want a C19th one -

mmmm, you could listen to the saint saens 5th

Good choice!

[viking]

Liszt #2
Saint-Saens #5?

[pianist1976]

Mozart 16 is very rarely played and I think that is a better starting concerto than Rubinstein's, Moszkowski... or Prokofiev (I think it's specially crazy to start with a Prokofiev concerto).

[lostinidlewonder]

...if you are thinking of entering serious competitions and entering to win....... Even Bartok is a bit dodgy.

In dodgy I am sure you mean "frikkin difficult".


Ravel LH Piano concerto in D
Gershwin Piano concerto in F

Only because they are hardly played in competitions and are bloody awesome. You would crush your competition if you play the Ravel just walk on stage with your right arm in a cast

But if this is your first concerto ever, I would opt for Mozart or even Grieg.

[point of grace]

(I think it's specially crazy to start with a Prokofiev concerto).

yeah, me too... your second piano concerto could be the prokofieff 1st!

[wert718]

Rubensteins 4th is very nice. 

[hodi]

RUBY 4 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cschauer]

If you're considering Moszkowski, and, all levity aside, I might give some thought to Henselt or Thalberg.  Also, Tchaikovsky's Third Piano Concerto played with the Andante and Finale would be interesting.  But, if this is your first concerto, Schumann or Grieg are probably more appropriate choices.