Piano Concerto No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra (2009) by Poul Ruders.Commissioned by The Norwegian Radio Orchestra and Jerome Lowenthal. Solo Piano part: WH31129CProgramme Note In this day and age when faced with the challenge of writing a 'Piano Concerto' e.g. a piece for symphony orchestra and an all-dominating and virtuosic solo Piano part one has two options: either: DO or do NOT go for it wholesale exploiting and enjoying the conrnucopia of sonorous treasures offered by the combination of the orchestra and the 'Grand Piano'. I have opted to go for it. When writing forone of our great young international Piano stars it would be absurd and a waste to do anything less and only 'nibble at the goodies'.However the piece is not a big clunky 'machine'. Rather it is a transparently orchestrated neo-classic (for the lack of a better work) composition in three movements lastign approximately 25 minutes.The piece begins with a moderately paced opening in which the Piano gradually gathers momentum and strength beginning with the most gentle of motifs. In this movement the soloist and orchestra fo not always agree and the vigilant listener will observe the disparity between the two. Following a swift up-beat coda the movement stops almost in mid-breath on one of the gentle Piano chords taken from the very opening.The extreme simplicity of the second movement 'Semplice' (the opening Piano solo bears the marking: 'slightly hesitant - like a child practicing') is after having been joined by the Vibraphone Harp and solo Violin suddenly violated with unprecedented brutality by the rest of the orchestra which virtually 'lies in wait - panting to pounce'. But eventually calm and order is restored.The finale is a crazy rondo of sorts. The marking 'Avanti Risoluto' (Forward with Resolve) is a bit of an understatement. It is a full throttle no hold barred ride -

Rhapsody in F Sharp for Piano and Orchestra was commissioned by the BBC Proms and first performed in the Royal Albert Hall on August 19th 1943. Written with the wartime audience in mind it is unashamedlypopular in style with its flashy virtuosity making it immediately accessible and entertaining. There is argument among scholars as to whether it should be referred to in the Major or Minor key as it makes almost equal use ofboth starting in one and finishing in the other. Ernest J Moeran (1894-1950) was an English composer who followed the tradition of R. Vaughan Williams and John Ireland by collecting preserving and using manyfolk songs mainly from Norfolk Suffolk and Ireland.

Carl Maria von Weber's fame rests mainly on ?Der Freischütz'. The unprecedented success of this opera overshadowed all his other works and contributed to their increasing fall into oblivion. Certain works such as ?Preciosa', ?Oberon', and ?Euryanthe', the overtures, solo concertos and piano sonatas, the lieder and chamber works enjoyed great popularity and were widely known in Germany and abroad as late as the second half of the 19th century. However, any chance of a revival of Weber's influential and substantial oeuvre was wasted in the 1920s, when a complete edition - begun by Hans Joachim Moser and with potential contributors including Wilhelm Kempff, Hans Pfitzner, Max von Schillings, Fritz Stein and Richard Strauss - failed after the third volume.Ever since there have been numerous attempts to restart a complete edition of Weber's works, but as this kind of project would have required the co-operation of scholars from both sides of the inter-German border, the political situation after 1945 was not conducive to any such enterprise. Careful negotiations led to the first tangible steps in the 1980s. The intention, right from the beginning, was to place Weber's work in context, and not to separate his musical output from his influential work as a writer, critic and organiser in the musical field, but to publish his compositions together with his letters, diaries and other literary output as the best way to document the cross-fertilisation between his musical, literary and practical activities.Since the German re-unification both working-parties concerned - at the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, and at the Musikwissenschaftliches Seminar, Detmold/Paderborn - have co-operated on the complete edition of the musical works (c. 45 volumes in 10 series: sacred music - cantatas, odes and other occasional works - stage works - lieder and vocal works - orchestral works - chamber music - music for piano - piano reductions - miscellanea, arrangements and orchestrations - works of doubtful attribution). The diaries (6-8 vols.) are edited in Berlin and the letters (8-10 vols.) and other writings (2 vols.) in Detmold. This complete edition aims to be a reliable basis of scholarly debate as well as for the authentic performance practice of Carl Maria von Weber's music. Conforming to the standards of recent historico-critical editions, the textual material will be based on all available authentic sources, accompanied by a detailed documentation of the genesis and a list of variants for each work. The musicological importance of the works will be evaluated by placing them in their historical context, the presentation of their genesis, history and Critical Commentaries. The letters, writings and diaries will be treated as inter-related and relevant to each other in the commentaries, therefore readers should benefit from a wealth of concise information and cross-references. / Piano Et Orchestre