# Concertos for Rare Instruments



## musicrom (Dec 29, 2013)

Does anyone know of any good concertos for instruments that generally aren't featured? For example, I've seen a couple of accordion concertos on Youtube which I liked. I thought it would be interesting to see and listen to some concertos for rarer instruments (e.g. violin, piano, etc.)


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Here's Papa Mozart's Alphorn Concerto. YouTube has one or two of Albrechtsberger's Jew's Harp Concertos (he was Beethoven's teacher...)


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## dgee (Sep 26, 2013)

There's a wealth of contemporary music featuring accordion or bayan. Gubudailina's Fachwerk and Recall by Norgard are two off the top of my head where that instrument is soloistic. Rebecca Saunders' Quartet with accordion is awesome, terrifying and haunting


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Vaughan-Williams' excellent Tuba concerto comes to mind. He also wrote a Romance for harmonica strings and piano, often counted as a concerto, but I find the idea of virtuoso harmonica a little too distracting.

I would love to hear a banjo concerto! I'm sure someone has attempted it, I just haven't found one yet, or had time to look very hard.


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## lupinix (Jan 9, 2014)

I'd like to hear an Ocarina concerto! If it doesn't exist maybe I'll perhaps write it myself some day. Will be hard for such an instrument though.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

I'm at instrument #65 in my ongoing blog series:
http://artrock2006.blogspot.nl/search/label/Unusual concertos

Latest entries: contrabassoon, rhythmicon and bass clarinet.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Weston said:


> Vaughan-Williams' excellent Tuba concerto comes to mind. He also wrote a Romance for harmonica strings and piano, often counted as a concerto, but I find the idea of virtuoso harmonica a little too distracting.
> 
> I would love to hear a banjo concerto! I'm sure someone has attempted it, I just haven't found one yet, or had time to look very hard.


Bela Fleck wrote one (#52 in said blog series).


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

Lou Harrison had a fondness for non-western instruments, such as his Concerto for Pipa with String Orchestra.


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## Llyranor (Dec 20, 2010)

This Vivaldi one is for two violins in tromba marina, two recorders, two mandolins, two chalumeaux, two theorbos, violoncello, strings and basso continuo, hehehe





Also for lute





And mandolin


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## Fortinbras Armstrong (Dec 29, 2013)

Weston said:


> Vaughan-Williams' excellent Tuba concerto comes to mind. He also wrote a Romance for harmonica strings and piano, often counted as a concerto, but I find the idea of virtuoso harmonica a little too distracting.


You might be interested in this Wikipedia article on Harmonica concerti. There are more of them than I had guessed.


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