We highlight Russia’s most famous Romantic composer, Pyotr Il’yichTchaikovsky and one movement from the beloved Russian composer who took inspiration from him, Sergei Rachmaninov in this week’s program.
Our first selection is from Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major, which he wrote in a month while in Switzerland, which he fled to after his brief, disastrous marriage to a young female student and a failed suicide attempt. The review of its premiere remains one of the worst reviews in musical history, calling it, among other things, “music that stinks to the ear.” Tchaikovsky could recite the caustic review word-for-word for the rest of his life.Today, however, it is considered one of the finest virtuosic pieces in the violin repertoire, and this first movement contains one of Tchaikovsky’s most recognizable themes.
We step away from Tchaikovsky long enough to hear one movement from one of his admirers: the 30-year-younger Sergei Rachmaninoff — the third movement from his Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor. If you enjoy this work, be sure to tune in to Arizona Encore on July 14th to hear the full performance.
This program closes with Tchaikovsky’s Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra. When Russian piano virtuoso Nikolai Rubenstein – who had hired Tchaikovsky to teach at the Moscow Conservatory, first heard it, he called it “worthless and absolutely unplayable.”
However, it was an immediate hit at its premiere in Boston with virtuoso pianist Hans Von Bulow and similarly well received on a European tour that followed. Today it is among Tchaikovsky’s most beloved compositions and considered one of the finest piano concertos ever written. Listen live on Tuesday night to hear the work performed in its entirity by pianist Hyo-Eun Park with The Phoenix Symphony. You can also enjoy a brief excerpt of this performance right here.
Featured in this episode:
Tchaikovsky – Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 – Sophia Zhang, violin; YeoJin Seol, piano
- I. Allegro moderato
Rachmaninoff – Sonata for Cello and Piano in G Minor, Op. 19 – Alexander Shtarkman, piano; Yehuda Hanani, cello
- III. Andante
Tchaikovsky – Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 23 – Hyo-Eun Park, piano; The Phoenix Symphony
listen live to hear the full work – only a brief excerpt will be available to stream
- I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso – Allegro con spirito
- II. Andantino semplice – Prestissimo – Tempo I
- III. Allegro con fuoco – Molto meno mosso – Allegro vivo
