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- John Corigliano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (1968)
- G Schirmer Inc (World)
- 3(pic)3(ca)3(bcl)2+cbn/4331/timp.3perc/hp/str
- Piano
- 32 min
Programme Note
Composer Note:
The work is scored for solo piano and large orchestra with a particularly large percussion section. It is in four movements: Molto Allegro, Scherzo (Vivace), Appassionato (Andante), and Allegro. The last two movements are linked together.
While the work is basically tonal (centered in B flat), there are many atonal sections, and, in the trio of the second movement, a section of strict twelve-tone writing. The rhythms throughout the work are highly irregular and meters change often.
The first movement (Molto Allegro), the largest in scope, uses Sonata-Allegro form in an original way. After a few bars of introduction by the brass section, the solo piano enters with an extended cadenza accompanied by percussion and harp, introducing the first theme – a savage three-note motto. This highly energetic section reaches a peak climaxed by a piano run which concludes on the orchestra’s opening note – E. A sudden pianissimo for the full orchestra introduces a change of tempo and mood. The following long, lyrical orchestral tutti introduces and expands the movement’s second theme – a cantabile melody first heard in the solo horn – and shortly builds to a large orchestral climax. A sudden change of tempo begins the development section, in which two opposed metamorphoses take place: each theme is separately developed, transforming the aggressive three-note motto into a lyrical theme, and the lyrical theme into a savage motto. In other words, each one becomes the other.
The cadenza in the recapitulation leads to the second theme in its original lyrical form, followed this time by a diabolic coda which brings the movement to an end.
The second movement is a short scherzo which spells the emotional tension generated in the first movement and to be continued in the third. Three short repeated chords form the scherzo’s motto, which is based on the superimposition of major and minor thirds. This interval of a third forms the building block of the movement. The trio is based on a twelve-tone row derived from the piano figures in the beginning of the movement. This tone row, however, is not an atonal one, being strongly centered on E. The recapitulation of the original material leads to a whispered conclusion of the movement.
In the third movement (Appassionato), all the themes are based on six notes. The form is arch shaped, building to a peak and diminishing to a quiet pizzicato strings and a hushed single-note piano melody which leads directly into the final movement.
The final movement (Allegro) is a rondo. Its major theme – a fugato – utilizes orchestral and piano tone-clusters as an integral part of its structure. The three subsections of the movement incorporate the major themes from the earlier three movements. The first subsection reiterates the slow third-movement theme (now played at a fast tempo); the second subsection (a buildup of the coda) recalls the scherzo’s material; and the final section at the end of the coda brings back the original three-note motto of the first movement, joining to end the concerto in a burst of virtuosic energy and color.
— John Corigliano
The work is scored for solo piano and large orchestra with a particularly large percussion section. It is in four movements: Molto Allegro, Scherzo (Vivace), Appassionato (Andante), and Allegro. The last two movements are linked together.
While the work is basically tonal (centered in B flat), there are many atonal sections, and, in the trio of the second movement, a section of strict twelve-tone writing. The rhythms throughout the work are highly irregular and meters change often.
The first movement (Molto Allegro), the largest in scope, uses Sonata-Allegro form in an original way. After a few bars of introduction by the brass section, the solo piano enters with an extended cadenza accompanied by percussion and harp, introducing the first theme – a savage three-note motto. This highly energetic section reaches a peak climaxed by a piano run which concludes on the orchestra’s opening note – E. A sudden pianissimo for the full orchestra introduces a change of tempo and mood. The following long, lyrical orchestral tutti introduces and expands the movement’s second theme – a cantabile melody first heard in the solo horn – and shortly builds to a large orchestral climax. A sudden change of tempo begins the development section, in which two opposed metamorphoses take place: each theme is separately developed, transforming the aggressive three-note motto into a lyrical theme, and the lyrical theme into a savage motto. In other words, each one becomes the other.
The cadenza in the recapitulation leads to the second theme in its original lyrical form, followed this time by a diabolic coda which brings the movement to an end.
The second movement is a short scherzo which spells the emotional tension generated in the first movement and to be continued in the third. Three short repeated chords form the scherzo’s motto, which is based on the superimposition of major and minor thirds. This interval of a third forms the building block of the movement. The trio is based on a twelve-tone row derived from the piano figures in the beginning of the movement. This tone row, however, is not an atonal one, being strongly centered on E. The recapitulation of the original material leads to a whispered conclusion of the movement.
In the third movement (Appassionato), all the themes are based on six notes. The form is arch shaped, building to a peak and diminishing to a quiet pizzicato strings and a hushed single-note piano melody which leads directly into the final movement.
The final movement (Allegro) is a rondo. Its major theme – a fugato – utilizes orchestral and piano tone-clusters as an integral part of its structure. The three subsections of the movement incorporate the major themes from the earlier three movements. The first subsection reiterates the slow third-movement theme (now played at a fast tempo); the second subsection (a buildup of the coda) recalls the scherzo’s material; and the final section at the end of the coda brings back the original three-note motto of the first movement, joining to end the concerto in a burst of virtuosic energy and color.
— John Corigliano
Media
Movement I
Movement II
Movement III
Movement IV
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra: I. Allegro
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra: II. Scherzo
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra: III. Andante appassionata
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra: IV. Allegro
Scores
Reviews
[the Piano Concerto] is a passionate interpretation of a fiendishly difficult score, its four movements characterised by intellectual cohesion and sumptuous sensuality.
July 2023
Corigliano's Piano Concerto packed an immediate wallop in the mighty hands of Philip Fisher. The piece has not been overlooked by pianists, but it's hard to imagine a more crisp and exacting performance than this.
The writing showed Corigliano torn between worlds. When the music is burly and rambunctious, it's thoroughly inline with the dominate atonal style of the '60s. Each time the piece turns lyric, there's the more consonant American school. As it turns out, Corigliano has remained a chameleon. His 1991 opera "The Ghosts of Versailles," coming up next month at Glimmerglass, bounces back and forth between a vibrant classicism and dissonant mystery.
The writing showed Corigliano torn between worlds. When the music is burly and rambunctious, it's thoroughly inline with the dominate atonal style of the '60s. Each time the piece turns lyric, there's the more consonant American school. As it turns out, Corigliano has remained a chameleon. His 1991 opera "The Ghosts of Versailles," coming up next month at Glimmerglass, bounces back and forth between a vibrant classicism and dissonant mystery.
2nd June 2019
...the ingenious musical fabric of Corigliano's 1967 concerto has stood the test of time.
While clearly a modern work, engaging harmonies are interwoven throughout this ambitious exploration of compositional techniques, including 12-tone rows and arresting tone clusters, plus hints of minimalism and counterpoint.
While clearly a modern work, engaging harmonies are interwoven throughout this ambitious exploration of compositional techniques, including 12-tone rows and arresting tone clusters, plus hints of minimalism and counterpoint.
1st June 2008
Discography
- LabelFirst Edition
- Catalogue Number0002
- ConductorLawrence Leighton Smith
- EnsembleLouisville Orchestra
- SoloistJames Tocco, piano
- LabelRCA Victor Red Seal
- Catalogue Number9026-68100-2
- ConductorLeonard Slatkin
- EnsembleSt. Louis Symphony Orchestra
- SoloistBarry Douglas, piano
- LabelKoch Intl. Classics
- Catalogue Number3-7250-2H1
- ConductorCarl St. Clair
- EnsemblePacific Symphony Orchestra
- SoloistAlain Lefevre, piano
- LabelMercury
- Catalogue NumberSRI-75118
- ConductorVictor Alessandro
- EnsembleSan Antonio Symphony
