Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos.3 & 4

Greatly admired for her interpretations of Chopin and Mozart, Felicja Blumental also recorded many works for piano and orchestra including the piano version of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto. Here she performs two of his more popular Piano Concertos.

Compared to the premieres of his previous two keyboard concertos, the first performance of Beethoven’s 3rd Piano Concerto is relatively well covered in terms of documentary evidence from friends, colleagues and the press. The Weiner Zeitung gave over a week’s notice of the concert on 5th April 1803 at the Theatre-an-de Wien, where the C minor Concerto was given its first outing, with the composer conducting from the keyboard.

The first public performance of his Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58 took place at the same theatre on 22nd December 1808. Not only was this the first public account of Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto, but also the premieres of his Fifth and Sixth (Pastoral) Symphonies, and the Choral Fantasy. The concert was also the first public account of the which also featured his Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral).