Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments (Stravinsky)

The Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments was written by Igor Stravinsky in Paris in 1923-1924. This work was revised in 1950.

It was composed four years after the Symphonies of Wind Instruments, which he composed upon his arrival in Paris after his stay in Switzerland. These two compositions are of the period known as neoclassicism, thus departing from the composer's previous Russian style of the famous Rite.

This concerto numbers among many works for piano written about the same time to be played by the composer himself. This is also true of Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra (1929), his Sonata of 1924 and his Serenade in A Major (1925). He kept the performance rights to himself for a number of years, wanting the engagements for playing this work for himself, as well as urgently desiring to keep "incompetent or Romantic hands" from "interpreting" the piece before undiscriminating audiences.^[1]

Orchestration

The orchestra is scored for two flutes, piccolo, two oboes, cor anglais, two clarinets, two bassoons (second bassoon doubling contrabassoon), four horns, four trumpets, three trombones and tuba accompanied by timpani, cymbals and three violoncellos or double basses.^{[citation needed]} Although combining winds and piano was unusual at the time, the form had been explored earlier in the twentieth century and would be explored later. Stravinsky commented on the scoring as follows:

The short, crisp dance character of the Toccata [the first movement], engendered by the percussion of the piano, led to the idea that a wind ensemble would suit the piano better than any other combination. In contrast to the percussiveness of the piano, the winds prolong the piano's sound as well as providing the human element of respiration.^{[citation needed]}

Première

The concerto debuted under Serge Koussevitzky at the Opera of Paris on May 22, 1924 under the direction of the composer, who played the piano. Koussevitzky had requested of Stravinsky such a work.^[2]

Sources

• Boosey.com

References

1. ^ Michael Steinberg, The Concerto: A Listener's Guide (Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1998) ISBN 0195103300 (cloth) ISBN 0195139313 (pbk), 467.
2. ^ Igor Stravinsky Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments, revised edition 1950 (Hawkes Pocket Scores 724, London and New York: Boosey & Hawkes, 1960),^{[citation needed]}

External links

• Live performance streaming file performed by Dr. Willis G. Miller III.