Pianist Francesco Piemontesi joins the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and Conductor Manfred Honeck for a live recording of Brahms’ First Piano Concerto — a work born from personal catastrophe, conceived in the aftermath of Robert Schumann’s suicide attempt and reworked over years from sonata to symphony to concerto.
Honeck brings elegance and symphonic breadth to its “Genesis”-like opening, while Piemontesi treats the piano not as virtuosic display but as a searching, thinking voice within the orchestra’s vast sonic world.
The recording pairs the concerto with the Six Piano Pieces, Op. 118 — composed thirty-four years later as a work of farewell, ranging from consoling intermezzi to the desolate, Dies-irae-haunted final piece Brahms’ friend Hanslick called “a breviary of pessimism.”
Francesco Piemontesi, Piano
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Manfred Honeck, Conductor
Tracklist
Please note that the below previews are loaded as MP3.Total time: 01:10:31
Additional information
| Label | |
|---|---|
| SKU | PTC5187417 |
| Qualities | DSD 128, DSD 512, DSD 64, DSD 256, DXD 24 Bit, FLAC 192 kHz, FLAC 96 kHz |
| Channels | |
| Artists | Francesco Piemontesi, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Manfred Honeck |
| Composers | |
| Genres | |
| Conductors | |
| Original Recording Format | |
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| Recording Location | Gewandhaus zu Leipzig, Germany |
| Producer | Johannes Kammann |
| Release Date | September 11, 2026 |
Press reviews
The Classic Review
Piemontesi does much of the heavy lifting, establishing a staunch presence through a resonant tone and well-structured phrases… he upholds the dignified spirit of the movement. The finale gets off to a fine start with Piemontesi’s unapologetic entrance, and the ensemble builds on that energy organically. By the close, pianist and orchestra generate exhilarating energy, becoming an undeniable force.
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