Sunwook Kim performs and conducts Beethoven's Piano Concertos Nos. 1, 2, and 4, and Anna Clyne's Stride

The stupendous Chamber Orchestra of Europe joins forces with renowned pianist Sunwook Kim, winner of the 2006 Leeds Competition, for an intercontinental tour, featuring the full set of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos alongside contemporary orchestral works. In this installment, enjoy dazzling renditions of Beethoven’s First, Second, and Fourth Piano Concertos, complemented beautifully by Anna Clyne’s Stride, amid the splendor of Esterházy Palace.

Beethoven began composing his Piano Concerto No. 1 in 1794 — actually composed after No. 2, but published earlier — with the intention of creating a virtuosic piece to showcase his piano prowess. The composition, effervescent and full of charm, was designed for performance in a concert hall by a large orchestra including horns, trumpets, and timpani. The Second Piano Concerto is one of his earliest works, first sketched out in Bonn before he moved to Vienna. Structurally inspired by Mozart’s piano concertos, the composition is rich with virtuosic motifs, vibrant harmonies, and dramatic contrast. Piano Concerto No. 4 also follows a classical structure, yet the composer’s innovation is evident from the first note: the piece opens with a genre-defying piano introduction of the main theme, followed by an orchestral response. Beethoven’s music was Anna Clyne’s main inspiration for Stride, whose title derives from the octave leaps that stride in the left hand in the first movement of the "Pathétique" Sonata. Clyne states that she was "immediately drawn to the driving energy of this bass movement" and was thus motivated to use it as a tool to propel the composition.