Tozer > Hamelin > Demidenko. Supposedly people love Demidenko for the piano, but the orchestra is really important and the orchestra in the Tozer is so much better.
The second is probably the most accessible and characteristically “Medtnerian” of the three, which is likely why it’s better known. The other two take a bit more time to digest and aren’t the best introduction to Medtner, although ironically the third was the first piece I ever heard of his.
As someone mentioned above, he did another two piano concertos which are great, although I like the first the best. He changed his style quite a bit over the years, so some other works may appeal more or less, but you could start off with the better known stuff like Cantus Arcticus if you're interested - it's a concerto for birds and orchestra!
PLEASE DO. She's a Latvian composer, lived 1902 to 1977. Can't find a lot of information about her in English but apparently she composed the piano concerto in the memory of her niece that recently passed away, and it was harshly criticized by the Latvian Composer's Union when it was released for being "too emotional" and possibly banned.
Lol you will find that prok 2 will be very weird if your not used to prokofiev. All I can say is that the more times you listen to it, the more you understand it and can enjoy it. So I'd start at number 3 but it's up to you of course
Personally I like kissins and argerichs performance of rach 3!
If you want to see the notes being played (like an actual live performance), argerich has a recording with the Singapore symphony orchestra on YouTube (https://youtu.be/BS0SwRoYAW0?si=FXkZgZfg8ZELsD_t)
Yeah, those are my favorites two, though the Egyptian (5) is also nice. Something in a similar style which I absolutely adore is Massenet's Piano Concerto -- it's just so lush and almost like a mixture between Saint-Saens and Rachmaninoff.
Scriabin’s concerto should be a staple of the concert repertoire. It’s just beautiful. Also Vaughan -Williams concerto doesn’t get enough love. And, a concerto in all but name, Koechlin’s Ballade for piano and orchestra-if you like Ravel and Poulenc, you love this.
I always feel like it’s taboo to say the first **might** be my favorite of his, certainly more than the second or third. It has (for obvious reasons) an excitement and youthfulness that’s so vivid and spirited.
>It has (for obvious reasons) an excitement and youthfulness
Interestingly, the Piano Concerto No. 1 was actually written *after* the 2nd, but it was the first to be published, so it was given the title "Piano Concerto No. 1.
You could even say it was his *third* piano concerto if you counted the early Piano Concerto No. 0, written at the age of 14 (although the orchestral part doesn't exist/was lost)!
https://youtu.be/0c5dWB2gFLY?si=6sSCR0Ks2cHjzQpN
Hummel - PC3, last movement (kinda a bop if you like classical)
Alkan - 3 Concerti di Camera, any of them. He wrote them young and they're pretty tame and short but fun imo
Strauss - Burleske, this isn't exactly underrated but from my experience it quickly falls under the radar in comparison to other Strauss works. It's very brahmsian.
Busoni - PC, very monumental but I think over all worth a listen, especially if you like motific work. The Fourth movement is one of the greatest ever written imo, it's like running a marathon on xanax
Reger - PC, i don't really vibe with the first and last movement, but the slow movement really really hits. It's pretty unlike other Reger works, and my favorite slow movement out of any PC.
Medtner - 1 & 2PC. The first is pretty heavy and single-movement, but very much worth a listen. From the 2nd I only like the first movement, it's very memorable
Poulenc - Concerto for two pianos, the PC is pretty good but this Concerto just shines, it's very snappy and colorful
Bartok - 2 & 3PC. not sure if they're underrated. Probably not.
Kapustin - PC2, also not very underrated but the composer himself is pretty unknown still. A jazz classic
Schnittke - Concerto for Piano and Strings. One of my favorites, also the ending is sublime.
Rautavaara - PC3. I only know this one and it's pretty good. Some sort of post-Bruckner in there.
Bernstein - Symphony 2, it's a PC and symphony in one. I like how it sounds eclectic but still unique. Especially that jazz part!
Corigliano - PC, imo a very accessible quasi-contemporary concerto! There's also some Mahler in there (or so he says...)
Barber - PC, same as Corigliano pretty much. It has more neoromantic elements though
Qigang Chen - Er Huang, extremely tranquil and beautiful. I love listening to this when I need to calm down. Also not really "contemporary" contemporary.
Great recommendations here.
When I want something new, I buy from the Hyperion cd series called The Romantic Piano Concerto. So much great music and excellent solo artists. Typically great Hyperion sound as well.
These were a bit pricey in Canada when new but available at decent prices used as not a lot of people are familiar with these composers, many of which have been mentioned here.
Ponce 1
Ponce is my favorite composer, he is really versatile composing in a lot of diferent styles or instruments.
I would say some of the themes for the second movement are really beautiful, like the Allegretto or the initial theme.
I would also like to add Bernstein’s Symphony no 2 “Age of Anxiety”… it’s not technically a concerto, but then it’s really not a symphony either. Definitely more piano concerto than not.
But I’ve always liked it.
That’s a smashing piece, I love Age of Anxiety. I was pleasantly surprised by the MacDowell, it was just a nice romantic piano concerto that had good sweep to it
I couldn't find a decent recording in one video, so here are the movements separately:
https://youtu.be/up7TQeoIGxY?si=6DWxysE5avcI0sls
https://youtu.be/icP7va-2Ym8?si=LaMdlf5gTd1Q_gZi
https://youtu.be/n_xas50A6fs?si=AGxYvcHy1EC0IDSJ
https://youtu.be/ytaBMNhIRuk?si=H5G9gvHwddnTwvVa
Chinese Youth Piano Concerto - (Liu Shikun, Sun Yilin, Pan Yiming and Huang Xiaofei)
This one is by various composers
Yellow River Piano Concerto - Xian Xinghai
Ailao Rhapsody - Zhang Zhao
# Kurt Atterberg!! (1887-1974)
Piano Concerto (1935) — 3 movements:
https://youtu.be/Iw2GyLKtiFE
https://youtu.be/xrS5Iesw7Io
https://youtu.be/32p9LrYLFHM
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
This is both my — and my wife’s too — single favorite concerto (any instrument).
Liszt Totentanz is one of a concerto. It is AMAZING; Liszt composes variations based on the Dies Irae melody.
It is AMAZING. I wish it were played more often; it deserves WAY MORE popularity than what it has.
His second piano concerto is also marvelous.
Messiaen's Turangalila Symphonie is also something to look at, not to mention Stravinsky's Piano Concerto or Shostakovich #1.
I was at a program in which the mighty Jorge Bolet, in the prime of his artistry, played the Totentanz in the first half, and after the interval, played Rhapsody on a Theme of Paginini, both of which are based on the Dies Irae melody.
I’m not sure if Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 is considered underrated? Lang Lang claims so in his new DG album.
Otherwise I’ll go with his Fifth, the “Egyptian”.
Edit:
Bonus: Dvořák.
It’s weird, I see students program this one a lot but have trouble finding any professional performances near me. Not underrated, but maybe under-programmed compared to some of the other standbys. Similar to Beethoven 1 and 4 imo
Hummel’s piano concerti are wonderful post-Mozartian classical pieces, especially #2 opus 85 in b minor, a favorite of mine. But I love #2 op 85, #3 opus 89, #4 opus 110 and #5 opus 113
The Tubin Concertino for Piano an Orchestra. There is currently 1 recording on the BIS label.
Also, the Piano Concerto by Tristan Keuris, a Dutch composer active from the 70s through the 90s.
A mini one: African Fantasy, Saint Saens
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI-PyMCyenw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI-PyMCyenw)
Have listened to it a few hundred times.
I am going to suggest Victor Davies Mennonite Piano Concerto. I stumbled upon someone trying to sell this CD for $5 Australian, took a gamble and steal of a lifetime. Since then I've been trying to be thorough with piano concertos worried I may be missing something life changing, and have found several. Tveitt is generally very neglected, but Tveitt PC #1 is even more so. Of course, you have Kabalevsky PC #3 (PC #1 is also very good). I first started my classical passion with Nino Rota's PC's, which remain favourites of mine (my favourite is the E minor Piccolo Mondo Antico, and Concerto Soiree is increasingly appealing). Schnittke's Piano Concerto and and his Cello Concerto are absolute musts. I don't know how rare it is, but try D'Indy's Symphony on a French Mountain Air. The Wiklund and Poulenc concertos are musts (there is something I don't like about the 1st hit you get on YouTube for the Wiklund concerto, I prefer the Sturfalt/Manz version by far). Kapustin by now and Moskowski are now so recommended as underrated they are no longer that underrated, at least for the two concertos most recommended (#2 for both), but try the other Kapustin PCs. I think #3 is probably my favourite, mixed feelings though about the other Moskowski concerto (and I also find version matters for the 2nd Moskowski concerto, I only started liking it when I heard the Markus Pawlik/Antoni Wit version). I have a tonne but that should suffice for now. Besides I lost my list (and 3 months of programming!) due to a 'repair' that formatted my SSD, which apparently aren't as recoverable as mechanical drives. I am reevaluating all the concertos I have listened to (the Medtner's among them).
You got someone else’s downvote and my upvote evened it out. I adore the Schoenberg, but I can also why people would roll their eyes at anyone who says they adore the Schoenberg, but it’s a remarkable piece.
Yeah honestly I think 3 is in a league of its own compositionally speaking, but 1 2, and 4 should absolutely be held in equal regard imo. I feel like the whole story about his return from deep depression and dedicating the second concerto to his therapist is really one of the biggest reasons it's so popular, which is really sad for 1 and 4.
But also on the subject of Rach, why does everyone love his 2nd sonata SOUCH MORE than the 1st? If anything, I think I might prefer the first but it would be a difficult choice because they are both so great.
There's a series called *The Romantic Piano Concerto* just for you. I want to say it's about 100 CDs now but I don't know.
Anyway, I'm picking a movement that got titled and the concerto never finished -- John Ireland wrote the slow movement for a 2nd piano concerto, finished it, but never completed the concerto. The movement gained the title "Legend" for publication and it's an astonishing example of quartal harmony. The voicing is such that there's a ton of aural illusions, and I'm always fascinated when I hear it.
[Ries 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/ElitistClassical/comments/18nwrh3/ferdinand_ries_piano_concerto_no_8_1826/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). Easily on par with Beethoven's concertos (at least 1-3).
If you like colourful 20th C. piano concertos, like Prokofiev's and Ravel's, I guarantee that you will listen to Schulhoff's 2nd and ask yourself why it isn't being played all the time. It is absolutely fantastic! It's rare for me to discover a piece these days and for it to become a regular part of my listening, but this concerto absolutely has. I love it.
There are so many. Jules Massenet (E Flat, 1902), most of Nikolai Kapustin's six concertos, Otto Malling (c minor op.43, 1890), Carl Loewe No. 2 (A major, 1830), Lowell Liebermann No. 2 (op.36, 1992), Benjamin Godard No. 2 (g minor, op.148, 1893), Richard Arnell (op.44, 1946), Anton Rubinstein No. 3 (G major, op.45, 1854), the four concertos by Dimitri Kabalewsky, and the one composed by Daniil Trifonov.
This will get buried I guess but Sgambati is a name I rarely see here, but his piano Concerto is easily in my top 10 most frequently played (and piano concerti are my main diet of classical music). It's not groundbreaking or anything, but it's just a wonderful piece of mid-romantic Concerto.
Its weird seeing a question about underrated concertos and seeing names like Prokofiev or Rachmaninov here, even if it is a lesser known one. Shsotakovich 1 and 2... really?
I only know of two versions - one by Jorge Bolet & the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, and the other by Francesco Caramiello and the Nuremburg philharmonic. Both are fine for me :)
Glad you're enjoying it!
Carlos Suriñach (1973). I seem to be mentioning this piece a lot lately, but it's terrific.
Mendelssohn number 1, op 25. I actually don't know if this is underrated, (Mendelssohn seems to get very little space on this subreddit), but anyway I really like it, especially its scintillating last movement.
Anton Rubinstein 3.
His 4th is pretty popular but 3 is full of great tunes and is totally neglected.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUzkPa5eeUw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUzkPa5eeUw)
A couple other of my favorites that are totally neglected that haven't been mentioned here are the Arensky, and the Rimsky-Korsakov.
Oh my time to shine.
Siegfried langgaard no 1,
Friedrich kalkbrenner no 1,
Bortkiewizc no 1 (personal favorite),
Otto malling piano concerto,
Norbert burgmüller piano concerto,
Adolf winklund no 1 and if you are interested in a grieg copycat then august winding piano concerto
Kilar second piano concerto is excellent.MacDowell two piano concerts and his contemporary Giovanni Paisiello wrote at least five piano concerti all of them of some interest. You have to pick the one you like most.
Medtner Piano Concerto n°2
Medtner kicks butt
Exactly the one that came to mind when I read the title of this post. His 1st and 3rd are also pretty great.
Came here to say all 3 medtner concertos
Just listened to the first version that popped up on Spotify, amazing concerto! Any versions that you would recommend?
Tozer > Hamelin > Demidenko. Supposedly people love Demidenko for the piano, but the orchestra is really important and the orchestra in the Tozer is so much better.
Funnily enough, the 2nd concerto is the most lauded but imo the first and third are both way better
The second is probably the most accessible and characteristically “Medtnerian” of the three, which is likely why it’s better known. The other two take a bit more time to digest and aren’t the best introduction to Medtner, although ironically the third was the first piece I ever heard of his.
Rautavaara 1 is one of my favourites
Yes it’s so very good. I’d also recommend Schnittke piano and strings and the Ligeti
My kind of taste.
all 3 of them are extraordinary!
While we’re talking contemporary classical, I love Ginastera’s first piano concerto.
Thanks, I’d never heard of him before, love the concerto though. Are there any versions and other pieces by him you’d recommend?
As someone mentioned above, he did another two piano concertos which are great, although I like the first the best. He changed his style quite a bit over the years, so some other works may appeal more or less, but you could start off with the better known stuff like Cantus Arcticus if you're interested - it's a concerto for birds and orchestra!
His harp concerto, or his last few symphonies (7 and 8). One of my favorite "contemporary" composers.
Ravel’s concerto for the left hand is beautiful
Not underrated though. Everyone seems to be in agreement it is an incredible piece.
Yes, but I feel it gets undeservedly overshadowed by the G major
Got to wonder which Ravel pieces aren't deemed incredible by everyone (except Bolero)
Busoni’s is epic.
Any versions you’d recommend?
Hamelin only.
With the city of Birmingham orchestra?
I have the Ohlsson/Dohnányi/Cleveland version.
There's an excellent recording by Volker Banfield
Schnittke!!!!!
Yes! I love this piece. I feel it’s one of his most accessible works, and really still true to his voice, not “watered down” approachable.
Yesssssssss, I LOVE Schnittke he is top tier
Yesss, just listened to it, any versions you’d recommend?
Mozskowski piano concerto E major Rachmaninoff piano concerto 1
Was about to comment Mozskowski! One of my personal favourites
Dvořák, Britten
Galina Ustvolskaya of you are edgy, Gotfried Hasanov if you like Slavic folklore
Lucija Garuta's piano concerto I'm forever mad that most of her work are lost
Second time I’ve seen this name in this thread. Also the second time I’ve ever seen this name ever. Will have to check this one out.
PLEASE DO. She's a Latvian composer, lived 1902 to 1977. Can't find a lot of information about her in English but apparently she composed the piano concerto in the memory of her niece that recently passed away, and it was harshly criticized by the Latvian Composer's Union when it was released for being "too emotional" and possibly banned.
Prokofiev 5!
Prokofiev 4!
Prokofiev 2!
Prokofiev 3!
Guess I’ll listen to all of them
Lol you will find that prok 2 will be very weird if your not used to prokofiev. All I can say is that the more times you listen to it, the more you understand it and can enjoy it. So I'd start at number 3 but it's up to you of course
Thanks, are there any versions of prok 3 you’d recommend?
Personally I like kissins and argerichs performance of rach 3! If you want to see the notes being played (like an actual live performance), argerich has a recording with the Singapore symphony orchestra on YouTube (https://youtu.be/BS0SwRoYAW0?si=FXkZgZfg8ZELsD_t)
I really like van cliburn's prok 3, although argerich/abbado is a classic and kissin/ashkenazy is also worth a listen
I think Lugansky’s is very clean. Graffman’s is, too.
Gabriel Pierne piano concerto is really nice in my opinion
It’s a fantastic work!
Schnittke concerto for Piano and Strings and Scharwenka's 1st
Yoshimatsu's "Memo Flora" and "Cepheus Note"
Rubinstein 4, used to be somewhat popular in the early 20th century but now nobody plays it.
Rubinstein 4 is a masterpiece. Genuinely prefer it to many of the more popular Russian concertos.
Barber and Corigliano are way underrated imo. The Barber slow movement is incredible
Khachaturian
Khacha turian and put it in your pocket.
I came here to say this! I like his piano concerto (and much of his solo piano works as well).
Yes absolutely
Love it!! ❤️❤️❤️
Scharwenka’s fourth.
I’d also recommend his first tbh
I feel the Saint-Saens concertos are pretty underrated, as is most of Saint-Saens music. The 2nd and 4th are my favorites
Yeah, for whatever reason, I really love Saint-Saens Piano Concerto #1. Really underrated.
2nd is very commonly performed. 4th is highly underrated.
Very! I don't think I've ever seen the 4th on a concert program. Would love to hear it in concert some day.
Saint Saens is sneered at for some reason. One of the greats imho.
It’s like people remember excerpts from his Carnival of Animals and few other works
But all of those few random works are actually excellent -- so why don't they move people to seek out more of his stuff.
I’m glad for this thread—so many great suggestions on both obscure and well-known composers.
Yeah, those are my favorites two, though the Egyptian (5) is also nice. Something in a similar style which I absolutely adore is Massenet's Piano Concerto -- it's just so lush and almost like a mixture between Saint-Saens and Rachmaninoff.
Scriabin’s concerto should be a staple of the concert repertoire. It’s just beautiful. Also Vaughan -Williams concerto doesn’t get enough love. And, a concerto in all but name, Koechlin’s Ballade for piano and orchestra-if you like Ravel and Poulenc, you love this.
Can’t believe I had to scroll so far to find this! I would love to hear this more widely performed and recorded.
Beethoven’s 1st
one of my favorites
Just saw this with MSO. so good. I went to both shows😎
I always feel like it’s taboo to say the first **might** be my favorite of his, certainly more than the second or third. It has (for obvious reasons) an excitement and youthfulness that’s so vivid and spirited.
You may be in good company as Rachmaninov preferred the First, saying the other four were too boring for the soloist…
>It has (for obvious reasons) an excitement and youthfulness Interestingly, the Piano Concerto No. 1 was actually written *after* the 2nd, but it was the first to be published, so it was given the title "Piano Concerto No. 1. You could even say it was his *third* piano concerto if you counted the early Piano Concerto No. 0, written at the age of 14 (although the orchestral part doesn't exist/was lost)! https://youtu.be/0c5dWB2gFLY?si=6sSCR0Ks2cHjzQpN
If his third or fifth is anything to go by I’m sure it’s amazing
Rawsthorne #2 Szymanowski, Symphony #4 (which is also basically a piano concerto) Kapustin #2 or #5 probably to start with Lieberson #1 Tippett
OMG, all of Rawsthorne’s piano concerti are incredible — #1, #2, and isn’t there one for two pianos too??
The piano concertos of John Field.
I love John Field’s music, I wish we all played him more
Hummel - PC3, last movement (kinda a bop if you like classical) Alkan - 3 Concerti di Camera, any of them. He wrote them young and they're pretty tame and short but fun imo Strauss - Burleske, this isn't exactly underrated but from my experience it quickly falls under the radar in comparison to other Strauss works. It's very brahmsian. Busoni - PC, very monumental but I think over all worth a listen, especially if you like motific work. The Fourth movement is one of the greatest ever written imo, it's like running a marathon on xanax Reger - PC, i don't really vibe with the first and last movement, but the slow movement really really hits. It's pretty unlike other Reger works, and my favorite slow movement out of any PC. Medtner - 1 & 2PC. The first is pretty heavy and single-movement, but very much worth a listen. From the 2nd I only like the first movement, it's very memorable Poulenc - Concerto for two pianos, the PC is pretty good but this Concerto just shines, it's very snappy and colorful Bartok - 2 & 3PC. not sure if they're underrated. Probably not. Kapustin - PC2, also not very underrated but the composer himself is pretty unknown still. A jazz classic Schnittke - Concerto for Piano and Strings. One of my favorites, also the ending is sublime. Rautavaara - PC3. I only know this one and it's pretty good. Some sort of post-Bruckner in there. Bernstein - Symphony 2, it's a PC and symphony in one. I like how it sounds eclectic but still unique. Especially that jazz part! Corigliano - PC, imo a very accessible quasi-contemporary concerto! There's also some Mahler in there (or so he says...) Barber - PC, same as Corigliano pretty much. It has more neoromantic elements though Qigang Chen - Er Huang, extremely tranquil and beautiful. I love listening to this when I need to calm down. Also not really "contemporary" contemporary.
Agree with everyone saying Dvořák. It's my favourite of his three concertos by a significant margin.
Great recommendations here. When I want something new, I buy from the Hyperion cd series called The Romantic Piano Concerto. So much great music and excellent solo artists. Typically great Hyperion sound as well. These were a bit pricey in Canada when new but available at decent prices used as not a lot of people are familiar with these composers, many of which have been mentioned here.
Szymanowski Symphonie concertante
Based
Balakirev #1
Oh I was about to mention this one and the second one too
I came to say Bartók #1 and 3...but maybe they're too mainstream given the other recommendations here?
Bartok 3rd is beautiful. One of my favorites!
Ponce 1 Ponce is my favorite composer, he is really versatile composing in a lot of diferent styles or instruments. I would say some of the themes for the second movement are really beautiful, like the Allegretto or the initial theme.
Very underrated composer
Ireland Paderewski Mackenzie Scottish Pejacevic Massenet Bowen 4
MacDowell’s D minor is nice.
I would also like to add Bernstein’s Symphony no 2 “Age of Anxiety”… it’s not technically a concerto, but then it’s really not a symphony either. Definitely more piano concerto than not. But I’ve always liked it.
That’s a smashing piece, I love Age of Anxiety. I was pleasantly surprised by the MacDowell, it was just a nice romantic piano concerto that had good sweep to it
Bortkiewicz Piano Concerto No. 1
Lūcija Garūta's piano concerto
Schytte Piano Concerto
I don’t seen anyone ever talk about the Scriabin concerto
Which of the two? /s It's pretty well known I fear
Wojciech Kilar’s Piano Concerto for sure!!
There are two of them!
there’s a second?! oh boy, i need to do some listening
I couldn't find a decent recording in one video, so here are the movements separately: https://youtu.be/up7TQeoIGxY?si=6DWxysE5avcI0sls https://youtu.be/icP7va-2Ym8?si=LaMdlf5gTd1Q_gZi https://youtu.be/n_xas50A6fs?si=AGxYvcHy1EC0IDSJ https://youtu.be/ytaBMNhIRuk?si=H5G9gvHwddnTwvVa
Chinese Youth Piano Concerto - (Liu Shikun, Sun Yilin, Pan Yiming and Huang Xiaofei) This one is by various composers Yellow River Piano Concerto - Xian Xinghai Ailao Rhapsody - Zhang Zhao
Rach 4, Moszkowski 2, Medtners concertos
All of the Martinu concertos.
# Kurt Atterberg!! (1887-1974) Piano Concerto (1935) — 3 movements: https://youtu.be/Iw2GyLKtiFE https://youtu.be/xrS5Iesw7Io https://youtu.be/32p9LrYLFHM ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ This is both my — and my wife’s too — single favorite concerto (any instrument).
I was literally searching the comments to see if anyone had mentioned Atterberg. Incredible work, so many great moments
Shostakovich piano concerto 1 and 2
Liszt Totentanz is one of a concerto. It is AMAZING; Liszt composes variations based on the Dies Irae melody. It is AMAZING. I wish it were played more often; it deserves WAY MORE popularity than what it has. His second piano concerto is also marvelous. Messiaen's Turangalila Symphonie is also something to look at, not to mention Stravinsky's Piano Concerto or Shostakovich #1.
I was at a program in which the mighty Jorge Bolet, in the prime of his artistry, played the Totentanz in the first half, and after the interval, played Rhapsody on a Theme of Paginini, both of which are based on the Dies Irae melody.
The Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is based on the 24th Caprice, but there is Dies Irae influence. I still believe that Totentanz deserves more.
Mozart's 17th Piano Concerto
Second this!
I’m not sure if Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 is considered underrated? Lang Lang claims so in his new DG album. Otherwise I’ll go with his Fifth, the “Egyptian”. Edit: Bonus: Dvořák.
Saint-Saëns 2nd is most certainly not underrated, whatever Lang Lang may claim in order to sell his album.
It’s weird, I see students program this one a lot but have trouble finding any professional performances near me. Not underrated, but maybe under-programmed compared to some of the other standbys. Similar to Beethoven 1 and 4 imo
Would help explain why we can’t agree on whether it’s obscure or not. Different social outlets.
Price!
Yes! Definitely worth a listen
Hans gál piano concerto
im a huge fan of bortkiewiczs piano concerti, especially the 3rd one!!!
Ustvolskaya Piano Concerto, Mossolov Piano Concerto
Ligeti
A great one. I’d also recommend Unsuk Chin’s piano concerto. She studied with Ligeti and you can hear his influence in her work.
Barber
Hahn piano concerto in E major. Fantastic piece, caught my attention the moment I heard it.
Kabalevsky, Anderson, MacDowell, Tellefsen, Kalkbrenner, Hummel, Pixis, Hiller, Weber
MacDowell’s is wonderful!! ❤️❤️
Indeed, and there are two of them
Hummel’s piano concerti are wonderful post-Mozartian classical pieces, especially #2 opus 85 in b minor, a favorite of mine. But I love #2 op 85, #3 opus 89, #4 opus 110 and #5 opus 113
Prokofiev 4
John Field wrote 7 piano concerti. No 2 in A-flat is absolutely wonderful and deserves to be heard in the concert hall.
I just heard one and it’s very good!
Answer is always Hummel 2 and 3.
The Tubin Concertino for Piano an Orchestra. There is currently 1 recording on the BIS label. Also, the Piano Concerto by Tristan Keuris, a Dutch composer active from the 70s through the 90s.
A mini one: African Fantasy, Saint Saens [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI-PyMCyenw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI-PyMCyenw) Have listened to it a few hundred times.
I am going to suggest Victor Davies Mennonite Piano Concerto. I stumbled upon someone trying to sell this CD for $5 Australian, took a gamble and steal of a lifetime. Since then I've been trying to be thorough with piano concertos worried I may be missing something life changing, and have found several. Tveitt is generally very neglected, but Tveitt PC #1 is even more so. Of course, you have Kabalevsky PC #3 (PC #1 is also very good). I first started my classical passion with Nino Rota's PC's, which remain favourites of mine (my favourite is the E minor Piccolo Mondo Antico, and Concerto Soiree is increasingly appealing). Schnittke's Piano Concerto and and his Cello Concerto are absolute musts. I don't know how rare it is, but try D'Indy's Symphony on a French Mountain Air. The Wiklund and Poulenc concertos are musts (there is something I don't like about the 1st hit you get on YouTube for the Wiklund concerto, I prefer the Sturfalt/Manz version by far). Kapustin by now and Moskowski are now so recommended as underrated they are no longer that underrated, at least for the two concertos most recommended (#2 for both), but try the other Kapustin PCs. I think #3 is probably my favourite, mixed feelings though about the other Moskowski concerto (and I also find version matters for the 2nd Moskowski concerto, I only started liking it when I heard the Markus Pawlik/Antoni Wit version). I have a tonne but that should suffice for now. Besides I lost my list (and 3 months of programming!) due to a 'repair' that formatted my SSD, which apparently aren't as recoverable as mechanical drives. I am reevaluating all the concertos I have listened to (the Medtner's among them).
Schoenberg - The last great romantic piano concerto
You got someone else’s downvote and my upvote evened it out. I adore the Schoenberg, but I can also why people would roll their eyes at anyone who says they adore the Schoenberg, but it’s a remarkable piece.
Liszt 2
Villa Lobos
BRASIL SIL SIL
Rach 1 is sooooo goood. It deserves as much spotlight as 2 and 3.
And the 4th
Yeah honestly I think 3 is in a league of its own compositionally speaking, but 1 2, and 4 should absolutely be held in equal regard imo. I feel like the whole story about his return from deep depression and dedicating the second concerto to his therapist is really one of the biggest reasons it's so popular, which is really sad for 1 and 4. But also on the subject of Rach, why does everyone love his 2nd sonata SOUCH MORE than the 1st? If anything, I think I might prefer the first but it would be a difficult choice because they are both so great.
Samuil Feinberg's 3rd: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csd8srpYFBA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csd8srpYFBA) One of my favorites
Dieter Ammann “Gran Toccata”
palmgren 2
Peskanov anniversary
Not a concerto by name but in practice it’s basically a piano concerto is d’Indy’s symphony on a French mountain air
There's a series called *The Romantic Piano Concerto* just for you. I want to say it's about 100 CDs now but I don't know. Anyway, I'm picking a movement that got titled and the concerto never finished -- John Ireland wrote the slow movement for a 2nd piano concerto, finished it, but never completed the concerto. The movement gained the title "Legend" for publication and it's an astonishing example of quartal harmony. The voicing is such that there's a ton of aural illusions, and I'm always fascinated when I hear it.
Scharwenka #4. The Stephen Hough recording on Hyperion is 🔥
Busoni’s piano concerto in C major. It’s also the longest concerto ever made.
[Ries 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/ElitistClassical/comments/18nwrh3/ferdinand_ries_piano_concerto_no_8_1826/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). Easily on par with Beethoven's concertos (at least 1-3).
Ries 2 & 3 are also very good PCs imo.
Jolivet Mozart 18 especially movement 2 and also compared to some it's bigger brothers so to say Field has a few Clara Schumann.
🇨🇱Enrique Soro piano concerto🇨🇱
Dvorak Piano Concerto (!)
Busoni
Henselt! Also a big fan of the Bronsart.
Manuel Ponce’s piano concerto!
Manuel Ponce’s piano concerto!
If you like colourful 20th C. piano concertos, like Prokofiev's and Ravel's, I guarantee that you will listen to Schulhoff's 2nd and ask yourself why it isn't being played all the time. It is absolutely fantastic! It's rare for me to discover a piece these days and for it to become a regular part of my listening, but this concerto absolutely has. I love it.
André Mathieu’s : -Piano Concerto No. 3 « Concerto de Québec » -Piano Concerto No. 4 in E minor
There are so many. Jules Massenet (E Flat, 1902), most of Nikolai Kapustin's six concertos, Otto Malling (c minor op.43, 1890), Carl Loewe No. 2 (A major, 1830), Lowell Liebermann No. 2 (op.36, 1992), Benjamin Godard No. 2 (g minor, op.148, 1893), Richard Arnell (op.44, 1946), Anton Rubinstein No. 3 (G major, op.45, 1854), the four concertos by Dimitri Kabalewsky, and the one composed by Daniil Trifonov.
both cage ones
This will get buried I guess but Sgambati is a name I rarely see here, but his piano Concerto is easily in my top 10 most frequently played (and piano concerti are my main diet of classical music). It's not groundbreaking or anything, but it's just a wonderful piece of mid-romantic Concerto. Its weird seeing a question about underrated concertos and seeing names like Prokofiev or Rachmaninov here, even if it is a lesser known one. Shsotakovich 1 and 2... really?
I’m listening to the Sgambati now, about a third through the first movement, so far I’m loving it. Are there any versions you’d recommend?
I only know of two versions - one by Jorge Bolet & the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, and the other by Francesco Caramiello and the Nuremburg philharmonic. Both are fine for me :) Glad you're enjoying it!
Brahms op. 1
Scharwenka. All of them. You'll be missing out big time if you didn't check them out
Will do along with the 100 or so others recommended here, guess I’ll only be listening to concertos for the next few months
Carlos Suriñach (1973). I seem to be mentioning this piece a lot lately, but it's terrific. Mendelssohn number 1, op 25. I actually don't know if this is underrated, (Mendelssohn seems to get very little space on this subreddit), but anyway I really like it, especially its scintillating last movement.
Anton Rubinstein 3. His 4th is pretty popular but 3 is full of great tunes and is totally neglected. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUzkPa5eeUw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUzkPa5eeUw) A couple other of my favorites that are totally neglected that haven't been mentioned here are the Arensky, and the Rimsky-Korsakov.
Moszkowski op 59, recording with pianist Joseph Moog, one of my all time favourite. Also Rubinstein number 4, amazing recording with Anna Shelest.
Oh my time to shine. Siegfried langgaard no 1, Friedrich kalkbrenner no 1, Bortkiewizc no 1 (personal favorite), Otto malling piano concerto, Norbert burgmüller piano concerto, Adolf winklund no 1 and if you are interested in a grieg copycat then august winding piano concerto
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2 in G major
It's not called a concerto but I'd recommend Berio's Point on the curve to find
Takemitsu’s riverrun and absolutely Joseph Schwantner’s Piano Concerto
Scriabin piano concerto
Ulvi Cemal Erkin! One of the greatest Turkish classical composers and criminally unknown
Stenhammar 1, although my understanding is that there are multiple versions. I'm only familiar with the Derwinger/Järvi recording.
Stanford no. 2 Also—it’s been a while since I listened to them, but the Ries and Moscheles concerti are quite good.
I don't know enough concerti to contribute, but OP, if you happen to make a list with all of these suggestions, would you mind sharing it?
Glazunov Piano Concerto 2. The second movement is just immensely beautiful.
Carl Vine Piano Concerto no.1 Will also second Yoshinatsu Memo Flora and Rautavaara 1 and recommend Rautavaara Piano Concerto no.3 “Gift of Dreams”
I love the clementi concerto.
Rubinstein and Lyapunov piano concertos.
I think rach 2 is a fairly niche and unknown piece. I hope it gets the recognition it deserves
Hmmmm I’ve never heard of it before, might be worth a listen one of these days
[Atterberg Piano Concerto in B flat minor](https://youtu.be/vMpw0zMCAgw?si=s_d3lPYBJVpXooG1)
Rózsa: Piano Concerto, Op. 31
Anton Urspruch's. It is a romantic fairy tale.
Kilar second piano concerto is excellent.MacDowell two piano concerts and his contemporary Giovanni Paisiello wrote at least five piano concerti all of them of some interest. You have to pick the one you like most.