Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 15 - Stravinsky: Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments (Live)

It takes a brave player to perform Brahms’ First Piano Concerto without a conductor, as there’s more than enough to occupy the pianist without having to worry about keeping things together. So it says much for the Evgeny Svetlanov orchestra that it plays like a huge chamber group—ensemble is tight, entries are neat and the performance surges impressively. Berezovsky’s huge technique might have been made for this music and he rises to its challenges with ease. It’s a fine account, and the unusual partner—Stravinsky’s intimate, spiky Concerto for piano and winds—is done with great panache.