The Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Op. 23, was composed in November 1874 - February 1875 at the instigation of the piano virtuoso Nikolai Rubinstein, director of the Moscow Conservatory. It was revised in the summer of 1879 and again in December 1888. It is the most famous of the three piano concertos written by Tchaikovsky. B-flat minor is a minor scale based on B-flat, consisting of the pitches B-flat, C, D-flat, E-flat, F, G-flat, A-flat and B-flat (natural minor scale). ... “Tchaikovsky” redirects here. ... Opus, from the Latin word opus meaning work, is usually used in the sense of a work of art. In this sense the plural of opus, opera, is used to refer to the genre of music drama. ... A short grand piano, with the lid up. ... A virtuoso (from Italian virtuoso, late Latin virtuosus, Latin virtus meaning: skill, manliness, excellence) is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability at singing or playing a musical instrument. ... Categories: Stub | 1835 births | 1881 deaths | Russian composers | Pianists | Russian musicians ... The Moscow Conservatory (Московская Государственная Консерватория им. П.И.Чайковского) is a prominent music school in Russia. ... A piano concerto is a concerto for solo piano and orchestra. ...

History

Tchaikovsky dedicated the work to Nikolai Rubinstein, whom he also intended to be its first performer. However, when Tchaikovsky proudly showed the work to Rubinstein and another musical friend Nikolai Hubert at the Moscow Conservatory on Christmas Eve 1874, he was met with bitter disappointment. After they had given it a first play-through, Rubinstein hastily dismissed the concerto as "banal, clumsy and incompetently written", as well as "poorly composed and unplayable." He then asked Tchaikovsky to undertake a substantial reworking of it in accordance with his own wishes. The composer was deeply hurt, and refused to listen to Rubinstein's advice. Categories: Stub | 1835 births | 1881 deaths | Russian composers | Pianists | Russian musicians ...

The first performance of the original version took place on October 25, 1875 in Boston, Massachusetts. The premiere was conducted by Benjamin Johnson Lang, with the solo piano part performed by Hans von Bülow, an admirer of Tchaikovsky's music. It was a resounding success, and Tchaikovsky later rededicated the work to von Bülow, who had described the work as "so original and noble" (although he later dropped the concerto from his repertoire). is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1875 (MDCCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Boston redirects here. ... Hans von Bülow. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

The Russian premiere took place just one week later in Saint Petersburg, with the Russian pianist Gustav Kross and Czech conductor Eduard Nápravník. In Tchaikovsky's estimation, Kross reduced the work to "an atrocious cacophony" ^[1]. Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... Eduard Frantsovitch Nápravník (24 August 1839, Býšť, Bohemia - 23 November 1916) was Czech/Russian conductor and composer. ...

The piano soloist in the Moscow premiere, on 3 December 1875, was Sergei Taneyev. Despite his strong reservations about the quality of the work, Nikolai Rubinstein conducted the orchestra, and later played the solo part several times. At that time, Tchaikovsky considered rededicating the work to Taneyev, who had performed it splendidly, but ultimately the dedication went to von Bülow. is the 337th day of the year (338th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Sergey I. Taneev. ... Categories: Stub | 1835 births | 1881 deaths | Russian composers | Pianists | Russian musicians ...

Instrumentation

The work is scored for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in B-flat, 2 bassoons, 4 horns in F, 2 trumpets in F, 3 trombones (2 tenor, 1 bass), timpani, solo piano, and strings. â™  This article is about the family of musical instruments. ... The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. ... Two soprano clarinets: a Bâ™­ clarinet (left, with capped mouthpiece) and an A clarinet (right, with no mouthpiece). ... The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers and occasionally even higher. ... For other uses, see Horn. ... Trumpeter redirects here. ... The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. ... A timpanist in the United States Air Forces in Europe Band. ... A short grand piano, with the lid up. ... A string instrument (or stringed instrument) is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. ...

Structure

The concerto follows the traditional form of three movements:

1. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso - Allegro con spirito (B flat minor)
2. Andantino simplice - Prestissimo (D flat major)
3. Allegro con fuoco (B flat minor → B flat major)

The concerto is famous for the dramatic tension between soloist and orchestra. It is markedly symphonic in character and differs considerably from the more musically conservative and outwardly virtuoso type of concerto that was then widely popular in Russia. Nonetheless, the technical demand placed upon the pianist remains considerable. For example, there are several passages with rapid octave movement. Speed and awkward note arrangement create further difficulties. As well, a performer must keep up with the overall monumental nature of the work with a very powerful tone that often dominates over the orchestra. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For the song titled Orchestra, see The Servant (band). ...

The well-known theme of the introductory section to the first movement is based on a melody that Tchaikovsky heard performed by blind beggar-musicians at a market in Kamenka, near Kiev in Ukraine. This, the best-known passage in the entire concerto, is notable also on account of its formal independence of the movement as a whole. It is not in the concerto's nominal key of B flat minor, but instead it is in the relative major key of D-flat. Despite its very substantial nature, the theme is only heard twice, and never subsequently reappears in the concerto. Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted Coordinates: , Country Ukraine Oblast Kiev City Municipality Raion Municipality Government  - Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi Elevation 179 m (587 ft) Population (2006)  - City 4,450,968  - Density 3,299/km² (8,544. ... In music, the relative minor of a particular major key (or the relative major of a minor key) is the key which has the same key signature but a different tonic, as opposed to parallel minor or major, respectively. ... D-flat major is a major scale based on D-flat, consisting of the pitches D-flat, E-flat, F, G-flat, A-flat, B-flat, C, and D-flat. ...

Other

• Also arranged for two pianos by Tchaikovsky, December 1874; revised December 1888.
• Tchaikovsky revised it three times, the last being in 1888, which is the version usually now played. One of the most prominent differences between the original and final versions is that in the opening section, the octave chords played by the pianist, over which the orchestra plays the famous theme, were originally written as tame arpeggios.
• Van Cliburn won the First International Tchaikovsky Competition in 1958 with this piece, much to the astonishment of people worldwide, as he was an American competing in Moscow at the height of the Cold War.
• Vladimir Horowitz performed this piece as part of a World War II fund-raising concert in 1943, with his father-in-law, the conductor Arturo Toscanini, conducting the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Two separate performances of Horowitz playing the concerto and Toscanini conducting were eventually released on records and CD's - the live 1943 rendition, and an earlier studio recording made in 1941.
• This piece was also further popularized among many Americans when it was used as the theme to Orson Welles' famous "Mercury Theatre" Radio Program. The Concerto came to be associated with Welles throughout his career and was often played when introducing him as a guest on both radio and television. The main theme was also made into a popular song entitled Tonight We Love, by bandleader Freddy Martin in 1941.
• The opening chords of this piece are quoted in Hoodoo by the British rock band Muse's (from their album "Black Holes and Revelations"). Their quotation is played in the relative minor key (B flat minor) to the original (D flat major).
• It was played as the final torchbearer entered the stadium for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.
• It is used in the animated film "The Meaning of Life" by Don Hertzfeldt.

Cliburn playing in the final round of the First International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition Harvey Lavan Cliburn Jr. ... The International Tchaikovsky Competition is one of the most prestigious classical music competitions in the world. ... Jan. ... For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ... Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (Russian: ; Ukrainian: ) (1 October 1903 – 5 November 1989) was a Russian-American[1][2] pianist. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Arturo Toscanini (March 25, 1867 – January 16, 1957) was an Italian musician. ... Toscanini conducting the NBC Symphony Orchestra in Carnegie Hall]] The NBC Symphony Orchestra was an orchestra established by David Sarnoff of the National Broadcasting Company as a vehicle for conductor Arturo Toscanini. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... The Mercury Theatre was a theatre company founded in New York City by Orson Welles and John Houseman. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... For other uses, see Muse (disambiguation). ... Badge, released in the USSR The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, were held in Moscow in the Soviet Union. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... Don Hertzfeldt (born August 1, 1976) is the creator of many short animated films, including the Academy-Award nominated cult favorite Rejected. Collectively, his animated films have received over one hundred awards and have been featured in over a thousand film festivals and venues world-wide. ...

References

• Tchaikovsky Page
• http://www.tchaikovsky-research.net/en/Works/Concertos/TH055/index.html
• Steinberg, M. The Concerto: A Listener's Guide, Oxford (1998)

External links

• Piano Concerto No. 1 was available at the International Music Score Library Project.