Rehearsing Haydn Piano Concerto in D Major

I’m writing this article after the second rehearsal for the Haydn Concert planned to happen on the 13th of October 2018 at the fabulous St. Cuthbert’s Philbeach Gardens, Earls Court, London, UK, (5:00pm).

Maestro Sisti showed a great deal of professionalism managing to conduct without counting with the full score! We have been trying to find the full-score of this very obscure piece by J. Haydn. Aiding to our frustration, we found out none of the major publishers, Boosey and Hawkes and Presto Classical were able to provide us with this material in time for the concert. Luckily, we managed to find the solo part from Boosey and the particelli from Presto. The full-score: we will create it by transcribing the instrumental parts manually.

This concert has proven to be a somewhat challenging one. The fabulous third movement with its fugatos and its concertante sections are hard to coordinate. The intricate texture of the piece is continually challenging us to carefully listen to each other and collaborate to produce a magnificent, intricate structure. A concerto grosso template, as suggested by our conductor, maestro Sisti, appears to the best choice when trying to define the construction of this complex section.

Every note of the second movement transpires originality. The fabulous progressions are just “transforming”. The experimental treatment of harmonies and the romantic feel of this section reminds us of the genius behind this masterful piece. Haydn’s second movements are characterised for having flagrant harmonies that embellish their melodious passages. This second movement is no exception. Its prolonged developmental passages create compelling atmospheres that submerge the audience in a musical-daydreaming experience.

The elegant first movement is just the best opening for a piano concerto that breathes classicism. Its rhythmical and stabilising features contribute to producing firm musical impressions in the audience.

We are aiming to play this concerto using just five performers. The latter turns this performance into a rather exposed event in which each one of the performers’ deliveries will be clearly heard. We already have a performer quitting the project due to not being able to handle the pressure :)! Fortunately, another brave musician is taking the challenge instead.

We are looking forward to seeing this project starting as it is going to be the first step into finishing the task of recording in audio and video the eleven Haydn piano concertos!

Ps. In case you would like to attend to this concert, book your tickets here.

Stay tuned for our next Haydn piano concertos.

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