Music In-Person: Piano Concertos

Piano Concertos: Two Centuries of Musical Thrills
Four In-Person Sessions
Wed., Oct. 23, 30, Nov. 6, 2024, 7-9 pm MT
Symphony Performance, Sat., Nov. 9, 7:30 pm

Sure, a big symphony brings chills, but what's more exciting than watching a pianist storm through the climax of one of those mighty Russian concertos? Those late-19th century keyboard monsters define dazzling virtuosity in their big moments, and make us swoon with those dreamy, moonstruck slow movements. That genre is best represented by Rachmaninoff's beloved Second Concerto—which serves as the exciting concert finale for this fast-moving course that follows the colorful history of the piano concerto. Popular DU instructor Marc Shulgold begins with Bach and his experimental works for harpsichord (singular and plural), then moves to the man who would define the genre: Mozart. Discover how one of Bach's sons planted the seed for the boy to write keyboard concertos as a homework assignment when the Mozart family visited London. Next, explore all the big guys: Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Liszt, Brahms, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saëns and on to the 20th century with Bartók, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Gershwin, Ravel, Britten, Copland and beyond. Watch videos of some of the greatest pianists past and present, compare performers and then cast votes on your favorites. At last, it's time for Rachmaninoff, whose revered Second is played live in concert by Simon Trpčeski with the Colorado Symphony—plus the Symphony No. 7 by Mahler.

Marc Shulgold has long been a regular at the Enrichment Program, teaching courses on various subjects in classical music, inviting guests such as Marin Alsop, Pinchas Zukerman, Jeffrey Kahane and others. He served as music and dance writer at the Rocky Mountain News for 22 years, before that working at the Los Angeles Times.