Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 3 Op. 37

I was just wondering if anyone has played the Beethoven Op. 37 or knows about it?

If you have, could you help me in interpreting it as far as "the overall mood" or what the piece "depicts" or what to think about during performance goes .. or any other tips that might go along with this concerto? This goes for all the movements, and help would be greatly appreciated.

i don't play it (and can't play most of Beethoven anyway), but it's a C minor piece, which for Beethoven represents somewhat tragic, sentimental and darker mood, but usually with extremely beautiful and expressive melody/singing lines.

i heard Lupu playing it live, which was the best i heard of it so far. his playing was lyrical with great tone sensibility. i'd hate if it's played too loud or too 'heroric' like some people would do.

I have a recording of Rudolf Firkusny playing it with the Pittsbugh Symphony Orchestra conducted by William Steinberg which is a wondeful interpretation of this piece.

I've played it. Not sure exactly what you're looking for. The mood changes with each section and movement, and the piece wasn't meant to depict anything concrete. As for tips, it's a transitional work, so you'll want to use your basic classical Mozart/Haydn style interpretation for much of it, but don't be afraid to lapse into controlled romantic fury here and there. (First mvt. cadenza and last mvt. coda come to mind.)

The balance should usually favor the right hand, but the LH can occasionally take center stage when appropriate.

Tempo control is also important. Don't let anything run away from you, and be sure to have the flourishes that introduce the rondo theme under strong rhythmic control, otherwise you'll have a lot of trouble putting those with the orchestra. The flourishes need to be rhythmic, and not just a "bunch of notes" that flutter about.