London Symphony Orchestra
The Anvil
Tue 3 February 2009, 7.45pm
Beethoven Overture: King Stephen
Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 3
Beethoven Symphony no. 5
Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 3
Beethoven Symphony no. 5
Maria João Pires piano
Sir John Eliot Gardiner conductor
Sir John Eliot Gardiner conductor
The first of a pair of concerts which continue Sir John Eliot Gardiner’s survey of Beethoven’s symphonies. Written for the opening of a new theatre in Budapest, the overture King Stephen is a celebratory piece rarely heard live. The opening movement of the Third Piano Concerto is full of tension and drama. The slow movement and a lyrical dialogue between the soloist and woodwinds, while the vivacious finale is rondo, punctuated with quicksilver piano cadenzas, which switches to the major for a joyful presto conclusion. The concert ends with the most famous symphony of all, the power and originality of which burst through no matter how many times you may hear it.
