# A Playlist of #1's



## itywltmt (May 29, 2011)

For this the third PTB instalment of _my number one obsession_, I thought I would indulge in a few titles that have in common the #1, but from different composers.

En français: http://itywltmt.blogspot.com/2011/10/un-programme-de-premieres-meli-melo.html

The main theme for the principal selections is "modern music", as I have selected works from the 20th century, and one "old favourite".

In no particular order, *Arnold Schönberg* wrote two "chamber symphonies", the _first _of which is a "transition" piece in my humble opinion between the almost neo-romantic _Verklärte Nacht_ and his later atonal masterpieces.

*Karol Szymanowski* wrote two violin concerti, and of that pair I again chose the _first_. It is a modern, yet lyrical work that I feel is under-played and possibly under-appreciatted.

A third modern piece is an _opus one_, and it is *Glenn Gould*'s only published string quartet. It is a work that dates back to the mid-50's (at about the time Gould was beginning his international career), and it is in every way an homage of sorts to the second viennese school, and aligned with works of Canadian composers he would have encountered in Toronto at that time (*Oskar Morawetz* comes immediately to mind). Gould did not leave much behind as a composer, claiming he didn't have "much to say". It is thought, however, that had he lived past 50, we would have had more compositions from him, as he would have moved away from the piano.

The "old favourite" is *Tchaikovsky*'s _First _piano concerto. The playlist features the final movement, but you can find the complete performance here.

Other "firsts" you will find if you browse my YouTube channel include Mahler's *First *symphony (recently featured on PTB), Elgar's *First *_Pomp and Circumstance_ march, Smetana's String Quartet *no. 1*, Liszt's *first *year of Pilgrimage and Abbott and Costello's _Who's on *First*_.

Happy Listening!

*DETAILED PLAYLIST​*
*Glenn GOULD (1932-1982)*
String Quartet *Op. 1*
The Alcan quartet

*Karol SZYMANOWSKI (1882 -1937)*
Violin Concerto *No. 1*, Op. 35
György Pauk , violin
Bergen Filharmoniske Orkester, conducted by Janos Furst

*Arnold SCHÖNBERG (1874 - 1951)*
_Kammersymphonie _(Chamber Symphony) *No. 1*, in E major, Op. 9
Members of the Round Top Music Festival (2011), conducted by Ransom Wilson

*Pyotr Ilich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)*
Third movement (_Allegro con fuoco_) from Piano Concerto *No. 1* in B-flat minor, Op. 23 
Van Cliburn, piano
Moscow Philharmonic orchestra, conducted by Kirill Kondrashin

Your Playlist: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBEBCB6BBEC3982F3

*October 21 2011, "I Think You Will Love This Music Too" will be adding a new montage "Chopin 'Number One' Montage" to its Pod-O-Matic Podcast. Read our English and French commentary October 21st on the ITYWLTMT Blogspot blog.*


----------

