Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No.2 for solo piano and orchestra Op.36 (1992) c.30'00"

(3.2.3.3./4.3.3.1./timp/perc(3)/hp/cel/strings)

I. Allegro Moderato
II. Presto
III. Adagio
IV. Allegro

Commissioned by the Steinway Foundation

Dedicated to Stephen Hough

First performed on June 11th, 1992 at the Kennedy Center, Washington DC by Stephen Hough, piano with The National Symphony conducted by Mstislav Rostropovich

ABOUT

The short-score of my Second Piano Concerto was completed on December 11th, 1991 and the full orchestral score was completed exactly two months later.  It was commissioned by the Steinway Foundation, and received its world premiere on June 11th, 1992, at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. with pianist Stephen Hough and the National Symphony conducted by Mstislav Rostropovitch.  It is dedicated to Stephen Hough, who also premiered my First Piano Concerto.  The work is scored for three flutes (third flute doubling piccolo,) two oboes, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, harp, celesta, strings, and a battery of three percussionists playing xylophone, marimba, snare drum, bass drum, tambourine, cymbals, suspended cymbal, antique cymbal, small and large triangles, woodblock, castanets, ratchet and slapstick.

In contrast to the First Concerto - a concise and virtuosic work in three movements completed ten years earlier - the Second Concerto is a longer, more expansive and lyrical work in four movements.  It is also more demanding for the soloist, both musically and technically.  The movements are unified by motivic, thematic and harmonic relationships, and the work's overall harmonic scheme develops from the motivic material itself.

The first movement, Allegro moderato, centers around B-flat and unfolds in an arc-like structure.  The movement's principal thematic material appears first in the orchestra above arpeggios in the solo piano, before being taken up by the piano itself. The massive chorale-like episode which follows is heard at key points in the movement, always functioning as transitionary material.  The lyrical secondary theme is in fact built on a twelve-note sequence which becomes important in the development of the following movements.  A restatement of the chorale leads to the development section, where the movement's principal thematic material is juxtaposed with fugal and chorale episodes. The cadenza which follows provides the only recapitulation of the important secondary material, thereby becoming crucial to a proper structural balance in a way that most cadenzas are not.  A restatement of the opening material closes the movement, with the piano and orchestra exchanging their original roles.

The second movement, Presto, centers uneasily around B-major/minor and is developed from motivic material from the first movement.  It is a quixotic and pianistically treacherous Scherzo, full of abrupt meter, tempo and thematic changes. It ends with a Prestissimo coda which features the solo contrabassoon.

The third movement, Adagio, is perhaps the emotional core of the concerto. The opening four-note motive in the bass-clarinet (b-flat, b-natural, a, c) summarizes the tonal scheme of the entire work.  On its most basic level, the third movement is in an A-B-A form. The first "A" section alternates episodes in the solo piano with the four-note motive above reiterated pizzicati in the orchestra, outlining a gradual chromatic rise from the keys of a-minor to C-Major. The "B" section which follows is an extended Passacaglia, whose theme, first heard fortissimo in the brass and bassoons, is derived from the first movement's secondary material.  The individual variations of the Passacaglia are transposed to the successive pitches of the passacaglia theme itself, so that the entire movement becomes in effect one huge variation.  The final "A" section can be seen as merging with the latter part of the "B" section, as it occurs over some of the last statements of the Passacaglia theme.

The final movement, Allegro, opens in bright, unambiguous C-major, with a rhythmic theme which serves as the refrain of a rondo-like structure.  The melody of one of the third movement's variations reappears as the secondary theme.  The soloist is put through a frenetic and taxing workout before the Concerto closes in its opening key of B-flat.

The Concerto has been recorded for Hyperion with soloist Stephen Hough and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.

RECORDINGS

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REVIEWS

“For me, there are few things more exilharating than discovering a new piece of music that bowls you over. That happened Friday at the…Dallas premiere of Lowell Liebermann’s Second Piano Concerto. It is more than a knockout. It is among the best works of its kind in this century. This grand, swashbuckling work is brilliantly put together - not a seam to be seen. It is big, bold and exciting. I cannot imagine how it might fail to become a repertory piece.”
The Dallas Morning News

“…perhaps the best piece in the genre since Samuel Barber’s concerto 30 years ago. The composer was Lowell Liebermann, and his Piano Concerto No.2…brought a knowledgeable audience of 2,000 music professionals from the league convention to its feet in cheers. Liebermann, a 31-year-old Juilliard-trained composer, knows how to write lyrically without sounding as if he is condescending - no small trick nowadays. The whole piece struck with the force of a superbly constructed narrative…The writing for the piano is terrific throughout, much of it…is breathtaking.”
The Baltimore Sun

”Lowell Liebermann’s Piano Concerto No.2, played by Stephen Hough, took up the evening’s second half. This pianist has everything, and he was given almost as much to do in Mr. Liebermann’s score. From the 16 measures of crystalline arpeggios in the opening thought the fiendish virtuosity of the final pages, this was bravura playing of some very demanding and attractive music.”
The Washington Times

“…the Piano Concerto No.2, Op.36, by 31-year-old Lowell Liebermann is a rousing showpiece. Keyboard writing in the Concerto No.2 is virtuosic throughout…Without question, Liebermann’s is an extremely attractive piece, electrifying even. No apologies are needed for a work this confident and beautiful.”
Piano Quarterly

“The Second Concerto…offers further evidence of Liebermann’s brilliant command of orchestral color. The material here is handled in an assured and convincing manner, with many opportunities for bravura as well as reflection.”
Hi Fi News & Record Review

“Extravagant in expression, Piano Concerto No.2 Op.36 nonetheless maintains a rigorous structural unity. The composer conducts the BBC Scottish Symphony and the performances are brilliant.”
The Indianapolis Star

“The American composer Lowell Liebermann (born 1961) has been demonstrating that it is still possible to write music that audiences actually like to hear without condescending, “dumbing down,” or compromising creative standards or individuality…The unabashed romantic exuberance of Liebermann’s four-movement Second Concerto, with a wickedly playful little scherzo and a similarly brief and energetic finale framing the striking passacaglia slow movement, made it the clear audience favorite. Here was music, brilliantly idiomatic in the writing for both piano and orchestra, that embraced the tunefulness and vivid coloring of Rachmaninoff and Liszt, yet was in no sense a bag of clichés or a rejection of contemporary language. Its muscularity and drive appeared neither sardonic nor belligerent, but seemed to be a manifestation of a definitely upbeat vitality.”
Stereo Review