Weber: Complete Works for Piano & Orchestra Ronald Brautigam, Die Kölner Akademie & Michael Alexander Willens

• Carl Maria von Weber (1786 - 1826): Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 11, J. 98:
• 1Weber: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 11, J. 98: I. Allegro08:12
• 2Weber: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 11, J. 98: II. Adagio03:23
• 3Weber: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 11, J. 98: III. Finale. Presto07:10
• Piano Concerto No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op. 32, J. 155:
• 4Weber: Piano Concerto No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op. 32, J. 155: I. Allegro maestoso08:55
• 5Weber: Piano Concerto No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op. 32, J. 155: II. Adagio04:32
• 6Weber: Piano Concerto No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op. 32, J. 155: III. Rondo. Presto06:50
• Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282:
• 7Weber: Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282: Larghetto affettuoso04:50
• 8Weber: Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282: Allegro passionato04:00
• 9Weber: Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282: Adagio00:26
• 10Weber: Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282: Tempo di marcia01:54
• 11Weber: Konzertstück in F Minor, Op. 79, J. 282: Più mosso04:57
• Total Runtime55:09

Info for Weber: Complete Works for Piano & Orchestra

Carl Maria von Weber wrote music that has been admired by composers as diverse as Schumann, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Debussy, Ravel and Stravinsky. But in his lifetime he was also recognized as one of the finest pianists of the period, with an exceptional technique and a brilliant gift for improvisation. Especially during the 1810s he toured extensively, and like other composer-pianists he wrote works to use as his personal calling cards, among them the two piano concertos recorded here. They were both composed in 1811-12, but while the First Concerto takes Mozart’s concertos as its model, Piano Concerto No. 2 looks towards Beethoven. This change of direction was probably influenced by the fact that Weber had acquired a score of Beethoven’s recently published Emperor Concerto. In any case there are some striking similarities between his concerto and Beethoven’s: the use of identical keys, and the inclusion of a slow, subtly orchestrated Adagio and a closing playful rondo in 6/8. Weber is unmistakably Weber, however: a highly original orchestrator whose music is at turns brilliant, melancholy and charming. These qualities are to the fore also in the Konzertstück from 1821, in which the composer liberates himself from Classical models and finds a new path. Much admired by Liszt, the work is a kind of symphonic poem in four sections, played without a break. Following highly acclaimed recordings of the complete concertos by Mozart and Beethoven as well as Mendelssohn, this disc brings the team of Ronald Brautigam and Kölner Akademie to the very crossroads of Classicism and Romanticism.

Ronald Brautigam, fortepiano
Die Kölner Akademie
Michael Alexander Willens, conductor

Ronald Brautigam
has deservedly earned a reputation as one of Holland’s most respected musicians, remarkable not only for his virtuosity and musicality but also for the eclectic nature of his musical interests. He has received numerous awards including the Nederlandse Muziekprijs, the highest Dutch musical award. A student of the legendary Rudolf Serkin, Ronald Brautigam performs regularly with leading orchestras including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre National de France and Gewandhausorchester Leipzig. Among the distinguished conductors that he has performed alongside are Riccardo Chailly, Charles Dutoit, Bernard Haitink, Marek Janowski, Sir Roger Norrington, Marin Alsop, Sir Simon Rattle and Iván Fischer.

Besides his performances on modern instruments Ronald Brautigam has established himself as a leading exponent of the fortepiano, working with orchestras such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Tafelmusik, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, the Wiener Akademie, Concerto Copenhagen and l’Orchestre des Champs-Elysées.

In 1995 Ronald Brautigam began what has proved a highly successful association with the Swedish label BIS. His discography of over 60 recordings to date includes the complete works for solo keyboard of Beethoven, Mozart and Haydn on the fortepiano, as well as an 11-disc series of Mozart’s complete piano concertos on the fortepiano with the Kölner Akademie, playing on period instruments. Among his most recent releases are two discs with Mendelssohn’s complete Lieder ohne Worte. His recordings have received prestigious awards such as the Edison Klassiek Award, Diapason d’Or de l’année, MIDEM Classical Award and the Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. Ronald Brautigam is a professor at the Hochschule für Musik in Basel.

Booklet for Weber: Complete Works for Piano & Orchestra