# Favourite Concerto Finale



## JamesMB (Nov 27, 2016)

Hi all 

Been thinking about my favourite concerto finale. 
Personally I'd go for Bartok's concerto for orchestra, Walton's violin concerto, the A minor violin concerto of Bach and Rach 3 (only played by Argerich ) Most of those include a return of material from earlier movements. 

What would you choose?


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

I love the whirlwind ending of the Prokofiev 3rd Piano Concerto


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

The last movement from Beethoven piano concerto no 5, closely followed by Rachmaninov 3 concerto.


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## Francis Poulenc (Nov 6, 2016)

The final movement of Poulenc's (single) piano concerto, starting at 15:58:


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

I would choose the third movements of the Brahms and Beethoven Violin Concertos, Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 and Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1.


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## Judith (Nov 11, 2015)

Tchaikovsky Violin. When the Cello performs those few notes and the violin starts playing, absolutely beautiful!!


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## ReFaFaFa (Dec 3, 2016)

Beethoven's 5th piano concerto or Rachmainoff's 2nd piano concerto.. I do have a softspot for Dvorak's cello concerto, though.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

ReFaFaFa said:


> Beethoven's 5th piano concerto or Rachmainoff's 2nd piano concerto.. I do have a softspot for Dvorak's cello concerto, though.


Nice choice, welcome to Talk Classical by the way.


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## Brahmsian Colors (Sep 16, 2016)

Dvorak's Cello Concerto, Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto (Byron Janis/Antal Dorati/London Symphony) and Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto


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## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

That's a very hard question. The first one that came to mind was the end of Grieg's Piano Concerto.


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## jim prideaux (May 30, 2013)

Dvorak's Violin Concerto.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

jim prideaux said:


> Dvorak's Violin Concerto.


YES! Seconded.


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## tdc (Jan 17, 2011)

Schnittke - Concerto for Piano and Strings


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)

The last movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20, especially when performed with Beethoven's cadenza. I love the whole concerto, but the last movement really stands out for me.

In fact, this concerto made me hesitate for a moment when casting my vote in the "Mozart vs. Beethoven" poll. Beethoven is my favorite composer, but Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 makes it a close call.


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

JamesMB said:


> Hi all
> Been thinking about my favourite concerto finale.......
> What would you choose?


Mvt III Beethoven Vln Cto...
Mvt III Beethoven Pno Cto #1
Mvt III Sibelius Vln Cto
Mvt III Barber Pno Cto
also - 
Mvt III of Vaughan Williams Tuba Cto


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Bettina said:


> The last movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20, especially when performed with Beethoven's cadenza. I love the whole concerto, but the last movement really stands out for me.
> 
> In fact, this concerto made me hesitate for a moment when casting my vote in the "Mozart vs. Beethoven" poll. Beethoven is my favorite composer, but Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 makes it a close call.


But the big famous Beethoven cadenza is for the first movement, no?


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)

hpowders said:


> But the big famous Beethoven cadenza is for the first movement, no?


Beethoven actually wrote cadenzas for both the first and last movements. In my favorite recording of the concerto, performed by Martha Argerich, she plays both cadenzas.

It's true that the first movement cadenza is more famous, but I actually like the last one even better. The trills in that cadenza are absolutely trilling!


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Bettina said:


> Beethoven actually wrote cadenzas for both the first and last movements. In my favorite recording of the concerto, performed by Martha Argerich, she plays both cadenzas.
> 
> It's true that the first movement cadenza is more famous, but I actually like the last one even better. The trills in that cadenza are absolutely trilling!


I know, but it is the first movement cadenza that is the famous one. Three minutes of high drama.

The trend with some pianists is to play the first movement Beethoven cadenza ver-note-im and create their own cadenza for the third movement.

I'm pretty sure I have a copy of the third movement Beethoven in the credenza.


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

Definitely...
Busoni - Piano Concerto
Shostakovich - Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and Strings
Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto #3 - Allegro Brillante

Also...
Maurice Ravel - Concerto for Left Hand
James MacMillan - Piano Concerto #2
Witold Lutoslawski - Concerto for Orchestra **
William Alwyn - Concerto for Harp and Orchestra - Lyra Angelica
Francis Poulenc - Concerto for Organ, Strings and Timpani


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## tdc (Jan 17, 2011)

Becca said:


> Maurice Ravel - Concerto for Left Hand


This one is cheating, but it certainly ends in a spectacular way. 

I also love the finale of the J.S. Bach Double Violin Concerto.

There are many more great ones but in general I don't listen to concertos as much these days. I gravitate towards other forms.


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## Tchaikov6 (Mar 30, 2016)

Ravel Piano Concerto
Beethoven Piano Concerto 4
Brahms Piano Concerto 2
Brahms Violin Concerto
Sibelius Violin Concerto


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## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

Definitely Liszt Piano concerto 1

The insane intensity and rhythmic originality in that movement has no equal for me, the first time I heard it I couldn't sleep that night because the dazzling runs on the piano kept playing in my head.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

Liszt - Piano Concerto No. 2
@20:08


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## CMonteverdi (May 2, 2014)

Beethoven 5th piano concerto
J.S. Bach 5th brandenburg concerto

LK


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## Rhinotop (Jul 8, 2016)

Saint-Saëns: Violin concerto No. 3, Cello concerto No. 1
Tchaikovsky: Piano concerto No. 1
Dvorák: Cello concerto
Prokofiev: Sinfonia concertante Op. 125
Grieg: Piano concerto
Brahms: Piano concerto No. 2
Rubinstein: Piano concerto No. 4
Moszkowski: Piano concerto
Mozart: Piano concerto No. 21
Beethoven: Triple concerto


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## Avey (Mar 5, 2013)

*Barber's *Violin Concerto was my first thought.






And last.


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## Avey (Mar 5, 2013)

Ah, wait, no these too!

*Stravinsky's *Violin Concerto (one of my most favorite recordings)






And *Adams*'


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

I would go for the finale of Mozart's pc 24 - magnificent tour de force of variations in a minor key brought to and end by a coda of such unexpected violence it ought to knock even the hardest Mozart critic off his feet.


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## pcnog11 (Nov 14, 2016)

Beethoven PC no.5 third movement - immense power, energy, technically advance and musically satisfying.... It is the Beethoven's exclamation mark of his final movement of the final PC!


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## Alydon (May 16, 2012)

For sheer verve and a great tonic on any day I would have to go for the last movement of Haydn's trumpet concerto or for a more intense and retrospective mood the finale of Elgar's violin concerto - those noble closing chords never fail to move.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

I would narrow down my picks above to the Brahms Violin Concerto finale being my favorite.

Brahms was a master of the Hungarian rondo finale, which seems to be "all over" his chamber music too.

For me, Brahms' Hungarian Rondos are delightfully infectious.


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## Valjuan (Dec 9, 2016)

Definitely have to go with the last movement of the Rach 3.


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

OK, I know it's not really a concerto, but I do love the end of Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Superb use of anti-climax and a good ol' perfect cadence.


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## DaveM (Jun 29, 2015)

I have so many favorite concerto finales, but one that I've discovered more recently is the finale to the Andante of the Widor Piano Concerto #1 (1876):


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