ONLINE EVENT: Beethoven Piano Concerto No 5

Krystian Zimerman, the LSO and Sir Simon Rattle bring their Beethoven piano concerto cycle to an end with a performance of the composer’s fifth and final work in the genre – the majestic “Emperor” Concerto. The most symphonic of his piano concertos, No 5 was the only one not to be premiered by Beethoven himself, because by 1811 his deafness was too serious for him to feel secure performing in public. Composed during the troubled years of the Napoleonic Wars, this is a vital, defiant and monumental work, its central Adagio providing an oasis of serenity amid the imperious, heroic style of the outer movements.

> Watch Concertos Nos 1 & 3 on 17 December 2020
> Watch Concertos Nos 2 & 4 on 19 December 2020

Photo: Deutsche Grammophon/Bartek Barczyk