Piano Concerto no.1 - 2002/3 - rev. 2006
duration 29 minutes

1. Con Fuoco - 2. Romanza - 3. Volante

This work was inspired by a visit to the mountains of northern Spain during the summer of 2002. The composition took place based on the sketches (written quite literally "in the field") over the next six months, being completed just into 2003.

The piece owes much to the 'Romantic' piano concerto genre, with relatively straightforward, traditional formal patterns for each movement. The first, lasting 12 minutes, contrasts energetic, rhythmic music with tender reflective interludes. The following Romanza opens statically, but with high emotion barely suppressed. This boils over as the movement develops until an unrestrained cadenza of some length bursts out (almost jumps off the cliff) before an exhausted calm returns. The whirlwind finale features glissandi and moto perpetuo ideas prominently.

The work was given its first two performances by Teppo Koivisto and the Kymi Sinfonietta under Juha Nikkola in Kouvola and Kotka in Finland. The second of these was broadcast by Finnish Radio 1. It was awarded shared 3rd prize in the 1st Uuno Klami Competition in 2004, being selected from over a hundred scores submitted, and given a further prize by the orchestra itself.

Scoring: 2 Flts (/picc), 2 Obs, 2 Clts, 2 Bsns, 2 Hrns, Tpt, Tbn, Tba, 2 Perc, Hrp, Solo Pno, Str

PLEASE READ: THIS IS NOT A PUBLIC DOMAIN WORK. ALL RIGHTS ARE RESERVED. PRINTED COPIES ARE FOR EVALUATION PURPOSES ONLY 

SCORE of PIANO CONCERTO no.1 (pdf)

solo piano part with two stave orchestral reduction (pdf)

Excerpt from Piano Concerto no.1 (3 minutes, 3 sections: middle of the 1st movement, a little into the slow movement, and the end of the finale)

YLE, The Finnish Broadcasting Company, and Kymi Sinfonietta management have kindly allowed me to place this here. The performers in 2004 were Teppo Koivisto, with Kymi Sinfonietta under the late Juha Nikkola. My deep thanks to Riika Luostarinen (managing director of the orchestra) and Reetaliina Marin (executive Director of the Uuno Klami Competition) for facilitating this.

Computer generated mp3s: I. Con fuoco   II. Romanza   III. Volante

(At this moment in time I am unable to place my recording of the complete work online - please contact me for details)

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