Britten: Piano Concerto; Violin Concerto (2013)

Although a pairing of concertos by a major composer would seem a natural thing, that of the Piano Concerto and the Violin Concerto of Benjamin Britten is uncommon. The reason is that the Piano Concerto is not a terribly well-known piece. It's entirely different in tone from the Violin Concerto, although the two works were composed only a year apart. The Piano Concerto is somehow less characteristic of Britten, which may have contributed to its neglect. But it comes off extremely well in this performance by the indefatigable ... Read More

Although a pairing of concertos by a major composer would seem a natural thing, that of the Piano Concerto and the Violin Concerto of Benjamin Britten is uncommon. The reason is that the Piano Concerto is not a terribly well-known piece. It's entirely different in tone from the Violin Concerto, although the two works were composed only a year apart. The Piano Concerto is somehow less characteristic of Britten, which may have contributed to its neglect. But it comes off extremely well in this performance by the indefatigable Howard Shelley and the BBC Philharmonic under Edward Gardner. The first movement, with its brilliance and its dry satire of Romantic concerto conventions, is close enough to Shostakovich in spots to make you wonder whether one composer might have been listening to the other (given its composition date of 1938, the influence could have gone either way). The concerto was poorly reviewed at its premiere, and Britten later gave it a new, slightly shorter and tighter slow movement. The... Read Less