The Core Repertoire: The Violin Concertos

This is the start of a new series I'll be writing over the new few weeks months that highlights the core repertoire of what a collaborative pianist should know if they want to make a living as a player or teacher in the field.

I'll be starting with the violin concertos, and what better place to find a great rep list but the Wikipedia article on the subject. Although many pianists would be perfectly happy playing only sonatas, working with young violinists often means playing concerto reductions, and pianists that are willing and able to play them are often in high demand. Below (with my comments added) are the violin concertos that are played again and again:

Violin Concertos Nos. 3, 4, 5 (Piano / Violin) For Violin and Piano Reduction. By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. String. 104 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (50485871) The last three concertos are the ones most frequently played by violinists and this Schirmer edition is one of the more playable reductions. The passage in thirds at the violinist's entrance in the 5th Concerto is one of the trickier passages in the concertos but one that must be learned to a high level in order to prepare the violinist for what they can expect with a real orchestra. See more info...

Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 - Violin/Piano Set of performance parts. By Ludwig van Beethoven. (Violin). String Solo. 40 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (50253650) Not the most difficult concerto in the world and sight-readable by most pianists. Listen to a recording with orchestra to add even more color to the orchestral reduction. See more info...

Concerto In E Minor For Violin, Opus 64 By Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), edited by Henry Schradieck. Set of performance parts (includes separate pull-out violin part) for violin and piano accompaniment. Schirmer Library, volume 235. E Minor. 28 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (HL.50253670) If you work with violinists you'll be playing this concerto again and again. Listen carefully to the orchestra in order to re-create the finesse of the Mendelssohnian orchestra without the heaviness that some of the eighth-note writing might seem to imply. See more info...

Symphonie Espagnole, Op. 21 - Piano / Violin By Edouard Lalo (1823-1892), edited by Leopold Lichtenberg. Set of performance parts (includes separate pull out violin part) for violin and piano. Schirmer Vol.1236. 71 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (HL.50258210) This concerto also gets played a lot by late-intermediate violin students. Listen to recordings with orchestra in order to bring out the lightness, color, and Spanish flair in the reduction. See more info...

Violin Concerto No.2 By Henri Wieniawski. Edited by Morteau. For violin, piano. Op.22(d). Published by C.F. Peters. (P03296) Not the most difficult concerto reduction nor the most interesting, but a necessary part of the repertoire since it is usually one of the first concertos that young violinists learn to play. See more info...

Violin Concerto No.5 By Henri Vieuxtemps. Edited by Arbos. For violin, piano. Op.37(a). Published by C.F. Peters. (P03323) Another concerto on the menu for developing violinists. See more info...

Violin Concerto By Max Bruch. Edited by Stross, Soldan. For violin, piano. Op.26(g). Published by C.F. Peters. (P04590) You'll need to get the tremolos working well in the opening to this very popular concerto. Have fun with the tutti near the end of the first movement. See more info...

Concerto in D, Op. 77 (Piano / Violin) Violin and Piano. By Johannes Brahms. (Violin). String Solo. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (50336920) One of the great violin concertos of all time. Requires a lot of work, especially in the tuttis, but repays the time spent with the fine reduction in this edition. See more info...

Violin Concerto No. 3 in b Minor, Op. 61 For Violin and Orchestra - Piano Reduction. By Camille Saint-Saens. Edited by P. Jost. Violin. Pages: Score = VI and 45 * Vl Part = 19. Urtext edition (Paper-bound). Published by G. Henle. (51480712) Frequently played by young violinists, the development and coda in the first movement will require a lot of rehearsal to put together. Again, listen to recordings to fill out the reduction. See more info...

Violin Concerto, Op. 35 - Violin/Piano Set of performance parts. By Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. (Violin). String Solo. 52 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (50258130) The king of the violin concertos and one of the most popular, as this concerto is de rigeur for aspiring soloists. What gives many pianists headaches are the quick changes of hand position just before the violin's entrance. Some reworking is needed in the tuttis in order to make them pianistic. See more info...

Concerto in D minor, Op. 47 By Jean Sibelius (1865-1957), edited by Alexandre Gretchaninoff, Fransescatti. Instrumental solo book for violin and piano accompaniment. Composed 1904-05. 51 pages. Published by International Music Co. (IM.529) Another concerto that will get you a huge amount of milage when learned. This is in many ways a symphonic work with violin obbligato, so spend plenty of time listening to the orchestra so you can recreate the luminescent colors of Sibelius' orchestra at the piano. Not a bad piano reduction, the International edition is the one I recommend to pianists. See more info...

Tzigane Concerto For Violin And Orchestra - Piano Reduction By Maurice Ravel (1875-1937). Set of performance parts (includes separate violin pull out part) for violin and piano. 25 pages. Published by Durand. (HL.50561654) This great one-movement work isn't really a concerto per se, but forms an integral part of the concerto repertoire. Ravel was a superb orchestrator, and this marvelous reduction by the composer captures the same colors but from a pianistic viewpoint. In the infamous repeated-note tutti, be sure to have efficient fingerings so you can work it up to a blistering tempo. See more info...

Violin Concerto No. 1 in D, Op. 19 By Sergei Prokofiev. (Study Score). Boosey and Hawkes Scores and Books. 115 pages. Published by Boosey & Hawkes. (48009204) The tremolos that open and close the first movement will need a loving touch to come close to the effervescent textures that Prokofiev writes for the strings. The second movement is a doozie, so spend some time perfecting the many technical challenges. A great reduction for learning about the Russian orchestral sound. See more info...

Violin Concerto No. 1 - Violin/Piano By Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975). Set of performance parts (includes separate pull-out violin part) for violin and piano. A Minor. 76 pages. Published by Sikorski. (HL.50489636) Put simply, one of the most moving violin concertos and the most technically demanding for the violinist. Playing this concerto plumbs the depths of sound in the Russian orchestra that are incredibly satisfying to play in the reduction. Spend a lot of time learning the 2nd and 4th movements, and make sure the violinist knows the tuttis as well as his/her own part. See more info...

Violin Concerto By Alban Berg. Arranged by Douglas Jarman. For violin and piano. Set of parts. Published by Universal Edition. (UE010903) Although this work is one of the pinnacles of the twelve-tone style, it is not necessary to know the details of Berg's row manipulations to play this work well. Rather, listen for the varieties of tonal color that make their way into Berg's accurate and eloquent reduction. See more info...

Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (Piano/Violin) By Samuel Barber (1910-1981). Violin solo single for violin solo and piano accompaniment. 34 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (HL.50337010) One of the great American violin concertos. The tuttis in the first and second movements are some of the emotional high points of the concerto and benefit from a full and opulent sound. The last movement will need plenty of rehearsal with the violinist. See more info...