Piano Concerto No. 11 (Joseph Haydn)

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Joseph Haydn, oil painting by Thomas Hardy (1791)

The Piano Concerto No. 11 in D major ( Hob XVIII: 11) by Joseph Haydn is his most frequently performed piano concerto . It was a must for almost all major piano virtuosos to include this concerto in their repertoire .

Preliminary remark

For most of Joseph Haydn's eleven piano concertos listed in the Hoboken directory, the exact date of their composition cannot be determined, as many autographs have been completely lost over the years or have only been handed down in sketches. Many notes were destroyed during the two fires at his house in 1768 and 1776 during Haydn's lifetime. Also in the princely opera house of Esterháza Palace - where Haydn served as Kapellmeister for Prince Esterházy for almost 30 years - a fire raged in 1779, which also caused enormous damage.

Of Haydn's eleven piano concertos, two have remained extremely popular up to the present day and are regularly played at concerts. The two piano concertos - in addition to the one discussed here, the piano concerto No. 4 in G major (Hob XVIII: 4) - Haydn wrote around 1782, presumably not on order, but for his own pleasure. He knew: "I wasn't a bad piano player!" There was also no specific reason to revisit this genre.

Work description

Haydn Concerto in D major, Part I; Int.Piano Competition, Kiev , soloist Margaryta Borysevych

The Piano Concerto in D major (Hob. XVIII: 11) is the latest, but at the same time Haydn's most famous piano concerto. It is one of the few of his concerts that was published for the first time during his lifetime; nevertheless it fell into oblivion over the years. Its authenticity was doubted for a long time, until a few years ago a letter from Haydn dated November 1784 to Boyer, his Parisian publisher of the first edition, was discovered which unequivocally attests to Haydn's authorship.

In historical sources, the fortepiano is also mentioned as a possible solo instrument. The concert has the following three movements:

  1. Vivace (D major)
  2. Un poco Adagio (A major)
  3. Rondo all'Ungherese; Allegro assai (D major)

All three movements of the concert are characterized by a clear musical statement; The strings' "big bows" in the slow movements of the concert are impressive , permeated by a virtuoso pearly piano . The character of the piano as an instrument determines the character of the entire work.

The first movement, in D major, begins with its ' Vivace ' in an extremely cheerful way, as Haydn rarely managed to do in a concert. A few minor sections that appear a bit darkened are mixed in with the individual thematic arrangements . Compared to the orchestral exposition, the solo instrument begins with a delay - but therefore all the more brilliantly. The further change between piano and orchestra is rhythmically elegant and with its mutual variations of the theme between solo instrument and tutti at the same time very melodic. The beginning of the second movement, the 'Un poco Adagio', grabs the heart through its intimacy with its broad, carried largo arcs of the strings, followed by the winds and the solo instrument. It exudes a dignified calm. With its romantic soundscape, it is reminiscent of the slow movement of the D minor piano concerto by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (KV 466). It conveys an intimacy and - according to the name of the sentence - radiates sublimity. The final movement, appropriately titled 'Rondo all'Ungherese', contains fragments of Hungarian musical culture. It contains elements of Magyar folk music that are unmistakably cheerful.

Joseph Haydn has cadenzas for the first and second movements that he wrote himself.

In addition to the piano as a solo instrument, two oboes , two horns (D) and a string orchestra are provided for the instrumentation of the concert .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Thomas Hardy (* 1757 in Derbyshire , England , † ~ 1805 in England) was an English painter. He is the creator of one of the most famous illustrations by Joseph Haydn,
  2. ^ Joseph Haydn was hired as court conductor by Prince Paul II Anton in 1761 . After his death, Haydn continued his service with his brother Prince Nikolaus I Joseph until 1790.