The final leg of Murray Perahia’s survey of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos, ending with the ‘Emperor’.
I heard Murray Perahia play this last week in Birmingham; the review here is for the London concert. It was simply brilliant. I agree with most everything in this review. It points out that this was a semi-historically informed performance, with a relatively small orchestra (around 40 musicians), that brought out the orchestral lines very well. I wish I had seen the previous concerts with the other concertos, and I wish these had been recorded. (Perhaps they were…)
I disagree about the 1st Symphony, however. It was stodgy and far too Haydnesque. Only the final movement had vigor.
But I consider myself lucky to have heard Murray Perahia play this, the king of piano concertos.