The Irish composer John Field, whose piano nocturnes greatly influenced Chopin, was also a well-known virtuoso who wrote seven piano concertos for his own use. Although his health was deteriorating by the time Concerto No. 7 was premiered in Paris in 1832, the performance was a much-awaited event attended by both Chopin and Liszt. Field's style takes off from Hummel rather than Beethoven or Schubert, and the nearly 18-minute first movement sprawls a bit from a thematic perspective. But the audience was not there to hear ...
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The Irish composer John Field, whose piano nocturnes greatly influenced Chopin, was also a well-known virtuoso who wrote seven piano concertos for his own use. Although his health was deteriorating by the time Concerto No. 7 was premiered in Paris in 1832, the performance was a much-awaited event attended by both Chopin and Liszt. Field's style takes off from Hummel rather than Beethoven or Schubert, and the nearly 18-minute first movement sprawls a bit from a thematic perspective. But the audience was not there to hear Beethovenian thematic development; they wanted brilliance and perhaps a hint of the Russian style that Field was familiar with, having spent much of his career in St. Petersburg and then Smolensk. These things the concerto delivers effectively, introducing thundering octaves in the later stages of the first movement after a nocturne-like interlude that serves as a slow movement (and in fact was published separately). The delayed piano payoff after a timpani-and-winds opening held the...
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