Ruth Leon recommends… Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 –  András Schiff

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 –  András Schiff

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Back to basics. If, that is, one can describe Beethoven’s dramatic Piano Concerto No.1 in C major, Op. 15, as basic. Here is a monumental performance, filmed in black and white, of Sir András Schiff performing it with The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Talking of Shakespeare, as we were, I came across a comment that Schiff made about this work.

He describes this 1795 Concerto as “absolutely huge in its concept for that time. I’ve always thought that there’s something Shakespearean about Beethoven in the way comedy, tragedy, drama, and tenderness are all present at the same time.”

Filmed in black and white, this concert is a captivating, historically informed, performance to wallow in, a showcase of craftsmanship and musicality. Schiff, conducting from the piano, sits at a stunning period-accurate recreation of a historic 1822 fortepiano crafted by Conrad Graf.  

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