Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 83

Featuring

Tadaaki Otaka
Nelson Goerner
NHK Symphony Orchestra
Johannes Brahms

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Unlike fashionable virtuoso concertos of his time, Brahms aimed to restore the 'spacious, lofty design of the classic masters' and revive polyphony in his concertos.

Critical Reception

Initially, the public and critics did not think highly of Brahms's Op. 83, but it later gained popularity and is now revered as one of the finest works for piano and orchestra.

Notable Performances

The public premiere of Brahms's Second Piano Concerto took place in Budapest on November 9, 1881, with the composer himself at the piano.

Composition History

Brahms began work on his Second Piano Concerto in 1878, almost exactly twenty years after completing his First Piano Concerto.

Composer Biography

Brahms had a curious habit of describing his new works to acquaintances in facetious or self-deprecating terms, calling his Second Piano Concerto a 'tiny, tiny piano concerto'.

Compositional Technique

The Second Piano Concerto is described as 'chamber music on a big scale' due to its intimacy, evident from the gentle exchange between horns and soloist at the opening.