Pianist Jan Lisiecki got the chance to record this cycle of Beethoven concertos through events that have propelled other young pianists to stardom: he was a sub for a star pianist, in this case, Murray Perahia, whose physical problems prevented him from performing. The five concertos were recorded live at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, and as if his not-fully-planned appearance was not challenging enough, Lisiecki leads the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields from the keyboard: the orchestra had already been booked for Perahia. ...
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Pianist Jan Lisiecki got the chance to record this cycle of Beethoven concertos through events that have propelled other young pianists to stardom: he was a sub for a star pianist, in this case, Murray Perahia, whose physical problems prevented him from performing. The five concertos were recorded live at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, and as if his not-fully-planned appearance was not challenging enough, Lisiecki leads the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields from the keyboard: the orchestra had already been booked for Perahia. The results, given all this, are pretty impressive. Lisiecki avoids the temptation to swing for the fences. His readings of the first two concertos are clean and straightforward, and his Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, is even a bit understated. Lisiecki saves his fireworks for the two middle-period works. The Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58, may be the strongest of the bunch: Lisiecki pushes the piano tempo in tension with the Dionysian rhythms to good effect....
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Add this copy of Beethoven: Complete Piano Concertos to cart. $54.00, new condition, Sold by Revaluation Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Exeter, DEVON, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2019 by DG.