a new Piano Concerto from Mendelssohn!

[gprengel]

First I couldn't believe it but extentious sketches for a 3rd piano concerto from Mendelssohn in e-minor from the years 1843-44 have been discovered and performed!!

--> Google --> "Felix Mendelssohn's third piano concerto"

I love the beginning and especially the passionate Coda of the first movement and the very beautiful and melancholic second movment! You can download the movments at amazon:

http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B002.../ref=dm_sp_alb

Gerd

[Peter]

Thanks for that - I didn't know of the early A minor concerto either. Why do they use the finale of the Violin concerto for the finale of the 3rd concerto?

[gprengel]

Why he used the 3rd movement of the Violin concerto? Larry Todd who did the realization says in:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/composers/mende...nterview.shtml

"But then it struck me that because the piano concerto is integrally related to the violin concerto, the best thing to do might be to take the finale of the violin concerto and transcribe it for piano. As the themes are related and date from the same period of Mendelssohn’s life I think the transcription was justifiable. There’s a precedent in a piano concerto transcription of the Beethoven violin concerto and it seemed to be the solution, so that’s what we’ve done."

[Chris]

I think that was probably a good call. Better than just making something up. Of course, I may be biased, because I have a particular fondness for the third movement of the violin concerto. From the little sample on Amazon, it seems to work pretty well.

[gprengel]

In the Amazon link I gave you unfortuneately they just presented more insignificant paassages ot the movements. Here are the beginnings:

http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/deta...s/hnum/5310764

I can tell you that I can't stop listening to these marvellous movements. The more I listen to them I come to the definite conclusion that they belong to very best this great composer has given to us!!

By the way can anyone tell me why the first piano concerto is generally regarded as superiour than the second in d-minor? I love the second much better, at least regarding the fantastic first movement.

Gerd