Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11 (1830)
Nikolai Lugansky, soloist
Valery Gergiev conducting the Mariinsky Orchestra, July 2020
I.
[0:00] Expos. - Orch. Theme 1 (Allegro maestoso)
[4:32] Expos. - Solo. Theme 1
[7:18] Expos. - Theme 2 (con espressione). E major
[11:38] Dev.
[14:23] Recap. - Theme 1
[17:10] Recap. - Theme 2. G major
[18:53] Coda. E minor
II.
[20:38] Romanze. Larghetto
[24:26] Enriched reprise
[28:08] Perpetuum mobile
III.
[30:02] Rondo. A/B (Vivace), a Krakowiak dance
[33:04] C
[35:06] A'/B’
[37:36] C' + Coda
“In this piece [Allegro maestoso] the pianist must be first tenor, first soprano - always a singer and a bravura singer in the runs, which Chopin wanted the pianist to take pains to render in the cantabile style. This was the way he taught Filtsch, his specially favored young pupil, to understand this first movement. At that time (1842), Chopin himself no longer played the piece, as he had already given up performing in public. Still, he played us the themes indescribably beautifully and gave us hints for playing the runs and passagework. He wanted the runs cantabile, with a certain measure of strength and bravura within, trying to bring out as much as possible the slightest thematic fragments, using the most delicate touch, even where the runs are no more than runs - which in this piece is the exception.…”
- Lenz, from “Chopin: Pianist and Teacher - as seen by his pupils”