Choosing a Piano Concerto

[erroredover]

Hi, I am going to be a senior in high school next year, and I wanted to compete in the concerto competition to play with my youth orchestra. I would only be allowed to do one movement, and when I audition, I will have to play with a second piano.
I have listened to many concerti, and I think I want to do a modern or contemporary one. Also, I was unsure if I should do a well-known concerto or a lesser-known one.
Some of the pieces I have liked so far are:
Barber (first mvt.)
Prokofiev No. 1 (first mvt.)
Prokofiev No. 2 (first mvt.)
Bartok No. 3 (first mvt.)
I am not sure of the difficulty in putting together a modern concerto is, considering this will be the first concerto I would be learning. I am wondering if I should just choose a classical or romantic one. If I chose a more traditional piece, I would probably do one of the Saint-Saens.
I appreciate any suggestions for pieces and advice that anyone has.

[thalbergmad]

The four you have mentioned would be "unusual" as first concertos.

Also, I would not have exactly said they were modern or contemporary.

Thal

[visitor]

^+1 !!

I would suggest if you will be go post romantic to try a single movent work like a rhapsody or similar or perhaps if you must excerpt try the super pretty and fun Kabalevsky no 3

Also have a look at "peanuts gallery for piano and orchestra". Really fine modern crowd pleaser and won't make your ears bleed :-)

[thalbergmad]

Really fine modern crow pleaser

Excellent type.

Thal

[ahinton]

Hi, I am going to be a senior in high school next year, and I wanted to compete in the concerto competition to play with my youth orchestra. I would only be allowed to do one movement, and when I audition, I will have to play with a second piano.
I have listened to many concerti, and I think I want to do a modern or contemporary one. Also, I was unsure if I should do a well-known concerto or a lesser-known one.
Some of the pieces I have liked so far are:
Barber (first mvt.)
Prokofiev No. 1 (first mvt.)
Prokofiev No. 2 (first mvt.)
Bartok No. 3 (first mvt.)
I am not sure of the difficulty in putting together a modern concerto is, considering this will be the first concerto I would be learning. I am wondering if I should just choose a classical or romantic one. If I chose a more traditional piece, I would probably do one of the Saint-Saens.
I appreciate any suggestions for pieces and advice that anyone has.

But none of the 20th century concertos that you mention are "modern"! The most recent - the Barber - received its premičre more than half a century ago, the Bartók dates from 1945 and Prokofiev's first two were composed more than a century ago!

[visitor]

Excellent type.

Thal

auto correct does have its part in a few happy accidents now and then. lol. crows are difficult to please though so it's a win either way no?

[thalbergmad]

haha, brilliant

[erroredover]

Oh, sorry for my mistake in classifying these concerti! I seem to always neglect time periods and just use modern and contemporary as catch-all terms for odd sounding pieces.
Anyways, I listened to the Kabalevsky No.3, I liked it, but looking at the sheet music, it didn't seem    like something I would enjoy learning, but I'll try it out a little. Also, I listened to the "Peanuts Gallery for Piano and Orchestra," but I didn't like it that much.
Do you guys think I should just do a more traditional piece instead of an "unusual" one?

[coda_colossale]

I'm not the concerti expert here, but learning Prok 2 as your first concerto?

[goldentone]

I don't know about Prokofiev 1, but Prokofiev is very difficult technically and not easily accessible to non classical lovers by any stretch of the unpanting imagination.  You would make it easier on yourself and their ears if you cleared the room for the unmodern need of modern times.

[erroredover]

I don't know about Prokofiev 1, but Prokofiev is very difficult technically and not easily accessible to non classical lovers by any stretch of the unpanting imagination.  You would make it easier on yourself and their ears if you cleared the room for the unmodern need of modern times.

Okay, you're probably right. I tend to overestimate my abilities often.
I think I'll do Saint Saens No. 2 or No. 5 (the first mvts.) or Mozart No. 20 (first mvt).

[pianoman1349]

Believe it or not, you may want to try the first movement of the third prokofiev concerto.  Many 9/10 year olds can play this movement really successfully in competitions in Canada (I learned this movement first when I was 10).  It's not as hard as it looks on the page as it actually fits really well in the hand.

Ravel g major (1st movement) is another really accessible 1st concerto choice that is often done by younger pianists ... it's not that technically difficult, although some people may have problems with the jazz elements in the score.

The same can also be said with the first movement of the second shostakovich concerto (it was written for Shostakovich's 19 year old son).  It's a lot of fun to play, and not terribly difficult or long.

Saint-Saens in always fun as well.

Best of luck.

[erroredover]

Believe it or not, you may want to try the first movement of the third prokofiev concerto.  Many 9/10 year olds can play this movement really successfully in competitions in Canada (I learned this movement first when I was 10).  It's not as hard as it looks on the page as it actually fits really well in the hand.

Ravel g major (1st movement) is another really accessible 1st concerto choice that is often done by younger pianists ... it's not that technically difficult, although some people may have problems with the jazz elements in the score.

The same can also be said with the first movement of the second shostakovich concerto (it was written for Shostakovich's 19 year old son).  It's a lot of fun to play, and not terribly difficult or long.

Saint-Saens in always fun as well.

Best of luck.

I really wanted to do the third Prokofiev concerto, but the orchestra part seems really difficult, so I am not sure if the orchestra I would be playing with would be able to play it well. Thanks for the suggestion, though! I think I will reconsider it.

[visitor]

hmn, perhaps Vladigerov No 1, Mvmnt 1? Has a fabulous entry for the piano after the short orchestral intro, dare I say more dramatic that others famous for their entries i.e. Grieg, Addinsell, etc.

Wonderful 'modern sound' in a distinctly tonal area with Slavic flavor and Scriabin influences abounding. 

Pancho could write for the piano, and this music is not that difficult from a purely technical perspective.

[four_ballades]

I've never played them, but Prok 2 and Bartok 3 are some of the hardest ones out there. Especially the first movement of the Prok--many consider it one of the hardest movements out there. I suspect these pieces would also be difficult for a youth orchestra.

Mozart concerti are pretty tough to pull off because errors are so evident. My suggestion would be the wonderful Scriabin Piano Concerto in F-sharp minor. He wrote it when he was quite young, and it is full of energy and vigor. The piano part is pretty difficult but nothing compared to the ones you originally mentioned. I find the third movement to be the most exciting. The first and second movements are incredibly beautiful as well. Take a listen!

[coherence]

My suggestion would be the wonderful Scriabin Piano Concerto in F-sharp minor. He wrote it when he was quite young, and it is full of energy and vigor. The piano part is pretty difficult but nothing compared to the ones you originally mentioned. I find the third movement to be the most exciting. The first and second movements are incredibly beautiful as well.

I'll always second a Scriabin recommendation, and this concerto really is a good one.

[coda_colossale]

I really wanted to do the third Prokofiev concerto, but the orchestra part seems really difficult, so I am not sure if the orchestra I would be playing with would be able to play it well. Thanks for the suggestion, though! I think I will reconsider it.

The third movement is also not difficult, and the orchestra part should be easier.

[stryke22]

The first concerto that I learned was Shostakovich No. 2 ... very accessible and the orchestra part is not too difficult. His first concerto is also very exciting but more difficulty (especially the 4th mvt.).

As others have said, Prokofiev is very technically demanding and tough to put together with an orchestra so I would steer clear of his concertos for now. I enjoy the Benjamin Britten concerto in D major. It is also fairly accessible (a little more difficult than Shostakovich 2 in my opinion) but a fantastic piece.

[erroredover]

Thank you all for your suggestions!
So the Kabalevsky No. 3 started to grow on me, so I think I might do that one, the only thing I am hesitant about is that I kind of wanted a longer piece. I'll ask and see if they'll allow me to do two movements, because in previous years, others' concerto movements have been around 14 minutes, and two movements of the Kabalevsky would be around 12 minutes.

What do you guys think about the Poulenc Piano Concerto?