Beethoven's introverted Piano Concerto No. 4 (1807) premiered in Vienna in 1808 during a concert that has never been spoken about since then. Not that the concert was such a success. It was simply too much of what was then offered in experimental music (Beethoven's music): the aforementioned piano concerto, the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, the Choral Fantasy, the aria Ah! Perfido and two movements
… from the Mass in c. All in all, a program of about four hours in an ice-cold room. The majestic Fifth Piano Concerto (1809) premiered in Leipzig in 1811. This piano concerto was an immediate success. The Fourth concert played an important role in Jan Lisiecki's career. He played it under Abbado in 2013, replacing Martha Argerich. Four years later, he played it during his Carnegie Hall debut, led by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Do Beethoven's piano concertos form a cycle? Not formally, says Lisiecki. However, they do belong together, because they provide such a beautifully diverse picture of Beethoven's development. Lisiecki's CD recording of the concerts is therefore a nice prelude to the Beethoven year 2020. (HJ)more