Isarphilharmonie, Munich, 19 June 2025
Ferruccio Busoni: Piano Concerto in C major, Op. 39
Ferruccio Busoni’s Piano Concerto in C major, Op. 39, is one of the most ambitious and unusual works ever written for piano. Spread across five movements and lasting almost eighty minutes, it goes far beyond the usual concerto. It combines the power of a symphony with brilliant piano writing, and even brings in a male choir at the end. This huge piece is rarely performed and is known for being incredibly demanding for both the pianist and the audience, with its intense energy and deep, sometimes mysterious ideas.
On Thursday evening at the Isarphilharmonie in Munich, I got to hear this remarkable concerto played by Igor Levit with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Antonio Pappano.
Igor Levit, one of today’s top pianists, is one of the few who regularly take on this massive work. He knows the piece inside and out, and it showed. He was completely in sync with the orchestra, carefully shaping every phrase and adjusting his playing to either blend or stand out when needed. His smooth, singing tone and delicate phrasing were fascinating. At times he would pull back into a quiet, almost dreamy calm before exploding with energy at the big moments, letting the music’s strange and magical world come alive.
Antonio Pappano, who is also a pianist, gave Levit plenty of space to express himself, and the two of them seemed to communicate effortlessly. Pappano led the orchestra with warmth and energy, giving each section its moment to shine. The musicians’ excitement was obvious—I rarely see so many smiles in an orchestra during a performance—and their dedication made the experience even more moving. When the male choir came in for the final movement, their powerful, unified voices took the music to another level.
Leaving the concert, I felt like I had just traveled through three centuries of classical music history in eighty minutes—a feeling I’ve only had with a few other pieces.
