Glazunov's Piano Concerto

Having listened to Glazunov's Piano Concerto in F minor again on the bus today, I have come to be surprised about the fact that this concerto is little known and little performed. This fact puzzles me because it is an absolutely beautiful concerto. True, from a structural ("academic") point of view, the construction of the concerto is rather poor: the first movement has a traditional sonata-allegro movement, but the two themes are art-lessly stacked together without any developmental passages; the coda is rather poorly anti-climatical; the second movement is a weak variation structure compare to its passionate first movement, so there is a kind of musical unbalance. But the music - and boy the music! - is very romantic and very touching. The two themes in the first movement are so beautifully created that they alone deserves praise. Every time I listen to the two themes my heart melts; there is a kind of wonderful tenderness in the music, one that implies courage, strength, but also sincerity and intimacy. One can almost say that it is the ultimate love poem in music: I don't recall hearing anything more romantic than Glazunov's concerto. So why is it that this concerto has absolutely no popularity at all? After all, Grieg's youthful concern made it onto the big stage, and I would argue it is not as good as this one. This concerto is youthfully fresh and powerful in its writing; while it is structurally poor, its use of the variation is bold and original - the final variation is an excellent attempt to wrap up a concerto. Tremendously Chopinseque, both the orchestral and the piano solo parts are wonderfully imaginative: the solo clarinet melody introduction to the second theme is a bold innovation which works extremely well; Glazunov is also tremendously aware of the power of tonal colour: setting the second theme in A major in contrast to the lushful romantic F minor of the opening theme is beautiful stroke of courage; but when the second theme comes back in the recapitulation, this time in F minor, it speaks of tenderness and a kind of loving memory. It is a beautiful work, and I am very sad to realize that it is so unjustly neglected.

PS: ten ultra-romantic orchestral works (in no particular order)

1. Glazunov: Piano Concerto in F minor
2. Scriabin: Piano Concerto in F-sharp minor
3. Chopin: Piano Concerto in F minor
4. Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D minor
5. Brahms: Symphony #3 in F major
6. Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor
7. Dvorak: Symphony #7 in D minor
8. Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto #2 in C minor
9. Elgar: Violin Concerto in B minor
10. Barber: Violin Concerto in G major