Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concertos No. 1 & 2 and Rondo WoO 6

Featuring

Aris Alexander Blettenberg
Orchester der Kammeroper München
Ludwig van Beethoven

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Recording & Production

The Orchestra of the Munich Chamber Opera presents these concertos in a new version arranged for a chamber ensemble by Aris Alexander Blettenberg.

Instruments

The piano used for this recording is a Bösendorfer model VC 280, chosen to incorporate Viennese musical culture and for its ability to blend with other instruments.

Performer Biography

Aris Alexander Blettenberg, the pianist and conductor on this album, won the International Beethoven Piano Competition Vienna in October 2021 and is a First Prizewinner of the International Hans von Bülow Competition Meiningen 2015 in the Conducting from the Piano category.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded in the Festsaal of the Casino Zögernitz in Vienna, a historically significant location near Beethoven's Döbling residence.

Recording & Production

The cadenzas for all three works on this album were specially written by the soloist, Aris Alexander Blettenberg, for this CD production.

Composition History

The Rondo WoO 6, included on this album, was originally the rejected final movement of Beethoven's Second Piano Concerto.

Interpretation

The pianist, Aris Alexander Blettenberg, revived the historical practice of the soloist playing the figured bass throughout the piece, including improvising chords during orchestral tuttis.