Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23
Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

THE STORY

On Christmas Eve of 1874, Tchaikovsky sat down at the piano to perform the first draft version of his first piano concerto for his close friend, the pianist and conductor Nikolai Rubinstein. Things did not go as he had hoped. As he recounted in a letter to his patron: “I played the first movement. Not a word, not a single remark!” Rubinstein’s silence gradually exploded into a scathing rebuke of the work, calling it impossible to perform and questioning Tchaikovsky’s compositional abilities.

Tchaikovsky’s response would prove an important career move; rather than listening to Rubinstein, he gave the piece (and its dedication) to pianist Hans von Bülow without changing a single note! Von Bülow had an entirely different reaction, praising the concerto as “so original in thought, so noble, so strong, so interesting in details…this is a real pearl, and you deserve the gratitude of all pianists.” Von Bülow subsequently took the work on a tour of America, premiering it in Boston Music Hall on October 25, 1875, followed by multiple performances across America and London—Tchaikovsky was well on his way to becoming an international name.

LISTEN FOR

• The iconic descending horn line of the opening moments of the concerto leading to the magnificent first theme in D-flat major that follows, accompanied by thunderous chords in the piano
• The balance of the demanding piano part with expressive orchestral writing—while concertos inherently feature a dialogue between the soloist and the orchestra, Tchaikovsky exploits the orchestra to its fullest capacity rather than having it serve as a mere accompaniment to the flashy piano writing
• The rondo form of the last movement, which compactly laces together recurring themes to form the concerto’s folksong-inspired finale

INSTRUMENTATION

Solo piano; two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, strings