The Romantic Piano Concerto, Vol. 66 - Herz: Piano Concerto No 2 & other works - Howard Shelley, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra

Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor Op 74[22'24]
1
Allegro moderato[9'10]
2
Andantino cantabile con molt' espressione[5'32]
3
Rondo: Allegro vivo[7'42]
4
Grande fantaisie militaire sur La fille du régiment Op 163[12'55]
5
Fantaisie et variations sur la marche d'Otello de Rossini Op 67[15'45]
6
Grande polonaise brillante Op 30[14'02]

Henri Herz—as much a phenomenon in 1830s Paris and for the ensuing decades in America as he has been derided since the curtain fell on his world of sparkle—wrote eight piano concertos. One is lost, so it is for the final time in this mini series that Howard Shelley and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra here get to put on their finest dancing shoes and perform the Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor (the one with which Herz conquered America in 1846) and three extended fantasies.